What the Tebbit Bill means to you

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UNDER Tebbit's Bill, you can only take industrial action "wholly or mainly" connected with the following: terms and conditions of employment; physical conditions of work; engagement or non-engagement; sacking; suspension; work duties; distribution of work; discipline; trade union rights; negotiating and consultation machinery; procedural rights. What does this mean for you?

Can you take action/issue leaflets concerning government policy?

Probably not. Action is only lawful if it's "wholly or mainly" concerned with a trade dispute.

This will affect workers in local government; health service; civil service; teaching where disputes challenging policy could be construed as partly 'political' Can you support disputes between worker and worker?

No. This sort of dispute is excluded from protection.

This means NO solidarity action to recruit low-paid contract workers into NO solidarity action pay and conditions.

NO action over demarcation disputes.

Can you take action supporting exploited workers abroad?

No. Action in connection with anything outside the UK is unlawful unless your terms and conditions will be affected by the outcome. What is your position in a sympathy strike?

It is already the law that secondary action (i.e. supporting other workers where your own employer is not in dispute) is restricted.

NOW strikers must be in dispute with their employer. You cannot take action by withdrawing supplies or other services, if it is to a company in which the employees of that company are not in dispute.

This will affect industry-wide disputes between unions and employers' associations.

Can you still picket your own place of work?

The picketing provisions of the 1980 Employment Act still apply. That is:

"lawful picketing still limited to picketing by workers at their own place of work for by union officers at the workplaces of members they represent)"

Only this type of picketing is protected. There is a Code of Practice which is guidance not law. This says:

"pickets and organisers should ensure that in general the number of pickets does not exceed six at any entrance to the workplace."

This is NOT LAW but could be used by police to plant but not another, or workers in one section of the civil or health service taking part in selective industrial action.

*after three months, choose who to reinstate from among those still out on strike.

Sacked workers still out will no longer be able to claim unfair dismissal.

This could facilitate sacking shop stewards and active members most likely to stay out.

It will encourage employers to use intimidatory types of ultimatums and will undermine union solidarity.

The 1980 Act has already exempted three new categories of employees from union membership requirements:

*where employee genuinely objects to being a member of grounds of conscience or other deeply-held personal convictions.

*where employee was employed before the union membership came into *where a union membership agreement came into effect after 15 August 1980 and has not been approved in a secret ballot by at least 80% of all employees covered by it. What does the new Bill add to this?

Whether or not there is a union membership agreement it is now automatically unfair to sack someone for non-union membership unless the closed' shop has been confirmed by ballot in