Issue - meetings

That delegated authority be given to the Chief Executive in consultation with the Leader to write to relevat Ministers, especially those in the House of Lords, based on comments at the meeting and at the Welsh Local Government Association (WLGA), expressing support for the Trades Union movement and seeking the dismissal of the bill.

The Chief Executive introduced the Trades Union Bill which had been published on 15 July 2015 and set out proposed reforms to the law for the roles of Trades Unions.

The Bill was currently proceeding through the parliamentary process. Appended to the report was a copy of the document that had been debated at the Welsh Local Government Association (WLGA) Council which outlined the key changes, key issues and opinion from the Chartered Institute for Personnel and Development (CIPD).

The main reforms within the Bill were:

·         Industrial action ballots (including ballot participation thresholds);

·         Industrial action notices and the length of ballot mandates;

·         Picketing; and

·         The contribution to political funds from union members

The Chief Executive commented in particular on Trade Union Facility Time and The Use of Agency Workers to Cover Industrial Action which he felt would not help in the continuation of good working relationships with Trades Unions.

Councillor Shotton said Flintshire County Council had fed into the WLGA response and said the legislation would be even more restrictive if passed in the House of Lords.

In response to a question, the Chief Executive said that if the Bill was passed and there was Industrial Action in the future, his advice would be that the Council adopt the same stance as previous and provide a list of staff exempt from Industrial Action to carry out critical services, and agency workers would not be employed.

RESOLVED:

That delegated authority be given to the Chief Executive in consultation with the Leader to write to relevant Ministers, especially those in the House of Lords, based on comments at the meeting and at the Welsh Local Government Association (WLGA), expressing support for the Trades Union movement and seeking the dismissal of the Bill.