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The Economist:
Trade unions: Back to the future

30 May 2015

WHEN Margaret Thatcher came to power in 1979 she set about bulldozing the trade unions, which had frequently brought Britain grinding to a standstill in the 1970s. On May 27th David Cameron indicated that his Conservative government would try to finish the job. Under a proposed new law, strike ballots would need a 50 percent turnout for industrial action to be legal; in the case of ''essential'' public services they would need the support of 40 percent of eligible members. Unions called the measures ''draconian''. Yet Mr Cameron's plans may turn out to be less effective than they look. Unions have lost much of the clout they once wielded. Since 1979 membership has dropped in both the private and public sectors, while the number of days lost to strikes has plummeted. The wage premium associated with union membership is around 5 percent, down from 15 percent in the 1990s. Deindustrialisation hastened unions' decline. The average age of a member is 44 and rising, according to Stephen Machin of University College London. The plan could backfire. The most successful unions, such as the RMT, usually command high enough turnouts for the new thresholds not to make much difference. Meanwhile the new law might galvanise members who have not voted before in strike ballots, thinks Alex Bryson of the National Institute of Economic and Social Research. The public may even be more sympathetic to strikers if they feel unions are being unduly squeezed, he says. Rather than weakening the unions, Mr Cameron may end up strengthening them.

This article was published by The Economist on May 30, 2015
Link to article here

Related links
Alex Bryson webpage
Stephen Machin webpage
Labour Markets Programme webpage

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