Employment Bill [Lords]

This is now a time-limited debate, and I am anxious to ensure that we deal with all the important issues scheduled for debate today, so I shall try to be as brief as possible. I shall speak about new clauses 1, 2 and 3, but I shall seek a ballot—pardon the pun; I meant a Division—on new clause 2, on balloting procedure, at the appropriate time. I shall be advised by you on that, Mr. Deputy Speaker. I seek to press it to a Division following consultation with hon. Members and a range of trade unions, who feel that new clause 2 is the most important new clause in the batch before us. It relates to the largest impediment to their activities and to good industrial relations. This is my third attempt to debate the new clause. My first two attempts were on clauses in the Trade Union Rights and Freedoms Bill, but both times the debate was talked out. I am grateful for the advice and assistance of the Clerk to the Committee, which helped us to ensure that the new clauses were in order, and could be selected today. I also pay tribute to the Institute of Employment Rights for its tenacious pursuit of trade union rights, and its advice and assistance. In particular, I pay tribute to Carolyn Jones, John Hendy QC, and Professor Keith Ewing. I also pay tribute to the late Brian Bercusson. Together, as a team, they have provided support throughout the last two decades in trying to seek trade union reform and establish basic trade union rights once again in this country. May I also pay tribute to the many trade unionists who have campaigned on these issues over the years and lobbied Parliaments? They include many rank and file trade unionists, general secretaries and others: we all owe them a debt of gratitude for campaigning for basic trade union rights in this country. The three new clauses are extremely moderate and could hardly be described as burdensome reforms in vital areas of trade union rights. They are supported by every trade union affiliated to the TUC, they are unanimously supported by the TUC general council and they have been unanimously supported by the TUC for at least three years. My concern is that they are more important now than before. As the country moves into a recession, there is always a danger that unscrupulous employers will use the excuse or the smokescreen of recession to seek to undermine wages and conditions under which workers are employed and even to shed labour without due regard to appropriate procedures and processes. Workers will look to their trade unions for protection, and, inevitably, there will be disputes, but people will look also to the Government to provide security and protection from exploitation, loss of employment and unfair treatment by ensuring that appropriate rights and protections are on the statute book. The three new clauses go some limited way in providing reassurance that there is legal redress against unfair treatment and victimisation, and that trade unions can operate effectively in representing their members and in implementing their members' wishes. The aim of new clause 1 is to provide protection from dismissal or detriment for workers taking industrial action. I think that Members in all parts of the House agree that the right to take industrial action is a fundamental right. It is guaranteed by international treaties and conventions: the International Labour Organisation conventions of 1987 and 1998; the Council of Europe's European social charter and article 11 of the European convention on human rights and fundamental freedoms; and article 8.1(d) of the United Nations international covenant on economic, social and cultural rights. The United Kingdom's law on trade unions—in particular, the denial of the right to strike and to take industrial action—has been held to be in breach of those international treaties by the decisions of their supervisory bodies over many years. The new clauses would not go as far as to try to incorporate or enact the international statutes in UK legislation: I wish they could. My hon. Friend the Member for Wolverhampton, South-West (Rob Marris), who was described earlier as a Fabian, will appreciate the approach of gradually improving legislation, and the moderate approach that I generally take to such matters. The aim is to protect workers taking industrial action from being sued, sacked or otherwise penalised by an employer. New clause 1 would provide that dismissals in anticipation of, during or after lawful industrial action would be void and ineffective, unless the employer could show that the reason for the dismissal was not connected to the industrial action.