Walkers' workers do themselves a flavour

The GMB has won the right to negotiate pay and conditions at a crisp factory in the north east of England.
Union recognition was achieved after a ballot of employees at Walkers site on Stephenson Road, Peterlee.
Two hundred and seven out of the 353 employees voted for the GMB to represent them - with eight against.
The result satisfied the two tests laid down in the statutory recognition laws introduced by Labour in 2000.
A simple majority supported recognition - and it was more than 40 percent of the total bargaining unit.
The vote was organised by the Central Arbitration Committee (CAC) - the quango that adjudicates recognition claims.
The workers to be represented are described as "all individuals who are employed as hourly paid and are located at the Walkers manufacturing site at Peterlee excluding all office staff, frontline management and agency/temporary workers and including engineer (including systems technician); technician (including hygiene technician/lubrication technician); site services operatives (including engineering store men and hygiene PPE), general operatives and quality assistants.
The ballot was required because the CAC was not satisfied more than half of the bargaining unit were union members.
The GMB was formerly the General, Municiple, and Boilermakers union.
There is a report of this case on the CAC website.
COMMENT:
This decision follows hot on the heels of the GMB's recognition win at Severn Trent water which was reported on The Workers United.
Other unions should be learning from the GMB's work in the private sector.

Lose a ballot and do two terms as a union general secretary

Severn Trent employees in Nottingham vote for the union

The GMB has won the right to negotiate pay and conditions for a group of water workers in Nottingham.
Union recognition was achieved after a ballot of employees at Severn Trent's site in Haydn Road.
Twenty-seven of the 53 employees voted for the GMB to represent them - with eight against.
The result satisfied the two tests laid down in the statutory recognition laws introduced by Labour in 2000.
A simple majority supported recognition - and it was more than 40 percent of the total bargaining unit.
The vote was organised by the Central Arbitration Committee (CAC) - the quango that adjudicates recognition claims.
The workers to be represented are described as "all employees including managers, other than the general manager, at the Severn Trent Utility Services Limited, Haydn Road site".
The ballot was required because just under half of the bargaining unit where union members.
The GMB was formerly the General, Municiple, and Boilermakers union.
There is a report of this case on the CAC website.
COMMENT:
Since July 19 this year eight recognition applications have been submitted to the CAC. Six of them have been from the GMB.
While the trade union movement generally has slowed the pace of new workplace organisation the GMB must be praised for committing resources to making life better for potential members with hostile employers.

Pilots win union recognition at low cost airline

The British pilots' union has won the right to negotiate pay and conditions at the low cost airline Jet2.com.
As predicted on The Workers United the British Airline Pilots Association (BALPA) was awarded recognition without the need for a ballot.
The Central Arbitration Committee (CAC) - the quango that adjudicates recognition claims - had already established that more than 60 percent of the company's 247 "flight deck pilots" are members of the union.
At a recent CAC hearing the company argued that a ballot would clear the air given the "heat" there had been on both sides.
Jet2.com also said a vote would provide a democratic mandate for union recognition.
The CAC panel agreed with BALPA that the law - introduced by Labour in 2000 - gave a union with that level of membership the right to conduct collective bargaining for the pilots without a ballot.
There is a full report of the decision on the CAC website.
COMMENT:
Congratulations to BALPA. This sort of victory against a modern and relatively new private sector employer should act as inspiration to the whole trade union movement.
But a public meeting in Manchester heard that BALPA members organised themselves into strike-breaking squads during the ongoing cabin crew dispute between Unite and British Airways.
The airline industry is cut-throat and the workers need unity to defend and improve working conditions.

Care home workers in Nottinghamshire sign up for union recognition

A group of care home workers in Nottinghamshire have cleared the first hurdle of a campaign to have their pay and conditions negotiated by the GMB union.
Under the union recognition laws introduced by Labour in 2000 the GMB had to prove it was likely to win the support of more than half the staff.
The Central Arbitration Committee (CAC) - the quango responsible - said the test had been passed in the union's bid to organise staff at the Loxley Lodge Care Home, School Street, Kirkby in Ashfield.
The union submitted evidence that it had eight members out of the 20 workers the employer said were in the proposed bargaining unit. And 12 people signed a petition in support of being represented by the GMB.
The workers who would be represented are hourly-paid care workers and domestics.
The employer - Leyton Healthcare - initially claimed to the CAC that some of the staff who had supported the union "did not realise what they had signed up for".
Now the application for recognition has been accepted by the CAC there will be an opportunity for the union and the employer to conclude a voluntary agreement.
If they cannot the CAC panel will convene again to adjudicate on any disagreements.
A detailed report is on the CAC website.
COMMENT:
The GMB - formerly the General, Municiple, Boilermakers and Allied Trade Union - is to be applauded for its efforts to organise vulnerable and low paid workers.
As reported on The Workers United last month the GMB is also campaigning for recognition at a small plant hire firm in south Wales.
It is vital that - while the Labour movement is concentrating on defending jobs and services from cuts - unions keep putting resources into offensive work.

Pilots union close to winning recognition at Jet2.com airline

The pilots union will today (November 3) try to persuade a hearing in London that it should be granted the right to represent workers at Jet2.com - without the need for a ballot.
The British Airline Pilots Association (BALPA) is following the UK’s statutory procedure for union recognition introduced by Labour in 2000.
The Central Arbitration Committee (CAC) – the quango responsible – has already established that 62 percent of the workers in the proposed bargaining unit are members of the association.
BALPA wants to negotiate pay and conditions for 247 “flight deck pilots” of whom 174 are union members.
Jet2.com is a low cost airline with bases at Newcastle, Edinburgh, Belfast, Leeds/Bradford, Manchester, East Midlands, Blackpool and Exeter airports. It employs more than 1.000 people.
Today’s hearing will decide if BALPA can be granted recognition without a ballot.
Under the law a union needs a membership level of 50 percent plus one person to secure recognition – but employers are allowed to argue for a ballot.
Firms that are hostile to unions hope they can pressurise their employees into voting "no" during the balloting period.
But it would be unusual for the CAC to demand a ballot when a union has more than 60 percent membership.
Today’s hearing is at 10.30am in the Hilton London Euston Hotel, Upper Woburn Place, WC1H 0HT. It is open to the public.
The CAC website has a detailed report of the acceptance decision and the bargaining unit decision for BALPA’s application for recognition at Jet2.com.

GMB takes on hostile employer in south Wales

The GMB union has cleared the first hurdle on the way to winning the right to represent workers at a plant hire firm in south Wales.
Under the union recognition laws introuduced by Labour in 2000 the GMB had to prove it was likely to win the support of half the staff.
The Central Arbitration Committee (CAC) - the quango that deals with union recognition - ruled that this test had been satisfied in the GMB's bid to organise workers at Pontyclun-based Hire One.
The union submitted evidence that it had eight members out of 17 workers in the proposed bargaining unit and that 13 people signed a petition in support of being represented by the GMB.
The workers who would be represented are fitters, drivers, hire shop managers, and a hire desk operative. They are based in Ponyclun and at hire shops in Aberdare, Llandow, Newport, and Swansea
The employer has resisted dealing with the GMB.
Hire One bosses claimed some workers had been duped by the union into signing the petition.
Some workers were phoned at home by the managing director and quizzed about their support for the GMB.
And the company said it was considering job cuts which might hit some union supporters.
A detailed report is on the CAC website.
The next stage of the process is to agree the bargaining unit.
COMMENT:
Well done to the GMB - formerly the General. Municiple, Boilermakers and Allied Trade Union.
Organising small hostile employers is vital for the future of the trade union movement.
And it helps bring public and private sector workers together to fight the cuts.