1) Employers will be able to hire agency workers to replace striking staff INDEFINITELY:

1. Essentially removing a bargaining chip from workers negotiating over pay and conditions and putting huge pressure on them to settle for less;
2. Under-trained agency staff put the safety and quality of services at risk;
3. This is in breach of international law (ILO Convention 87).

2) Unions will be asked to jump through hoops to hold a strike, even though industrial action is already seen as a very last resort:

1. It is already difficult and risky for workers to go on strike, which is why strikes are so uncommon (there are fewer working days lost to strikes per year than lost to accidents and injuries at work);
2. Workers go on strike if negotiations over pay and conditions reach an impasse and employees are left with significant concerns over the consequences of settling for less (for instance, junior doctors' went on strike in early 2016 because they feared working longer and for less pay may exhaust them and put patient safety at risk);
3. But now unions will have to jump through even more hoops to discourage them from taking strike action, such as:

• Appointing a picket supervisor who must make themselves known to and contactable by the police, carry a letter of authorisation from the union which they must be able to present to the police, and wear an armband or badge to identify themselves on the picket line even though Chief Police Officers have already been consulted by government and said current legislation is fit for purpose;
• Giving notice of 14 days, doubling the current seven days notice period, which gives employers time to find agency workers to replace striking staff. No other organisation has to give advance notice of demonstration and this sets a dangerous precedent on the restriction of civil protest;
• Holding a fresh strike ballot after four months if the dispute is not settled in that time as members' votes to take industrial action will become invalid after this period, encouraging bad employers to hold out against trade union negotiations knowing unions will have to go through an expensive re-balloting process if they don’t concede;
• Securing a 50% turnout on strike ballots, and in the public sector 40% of all members eligible for the ballot must vote in favour for the strike to go ahead. But the government is forcing unions to use outdated postal voting systems rather than the more convenient electronic systems that would help members to participate. The government cites the risk of 'fraud' in electronic voting, even though Tory candidate for the London mayoral election Zac Goldsmith was recently nominated this way!

3) Union members will have to find different and less convenient ways to pay membership fees:

1. Some organisations – particularly the public sector – currently use the check-off system whereby employees can have their subs subtracted from their wages. This system is widely preferred by both workers and employers but will become illegal under the Bill;
2. In most instances, trade unions pay for the provision of check-off through payroll, which actually earns the employer money. This is never highlighted and instead check-off is often reported as cost and a burden on business.

4) Public sector workers will have to declare all the facility time they use to work on trade union matters and its cost (but NOT the savings it incurs)

1. This invites anti-union press attention as it is a biased view of the supposed "cost" of trade unions while ignoring the benefits they bring both employers and staff;
2. Facility time is used to help employees with any issues they have had work and ensure their safety and welfare, thereby safeguarding their ability to deliver public services safely, effectively, and to a high standard.

5) Workers will have to reassert their choice to pay a political levy every five years even though they can withdraw at any point

1. Under current legislation, trade unions must run a political fund ballot every ten years. Some unions donate to the Labour Party and Members currently have the opportunity to opt-out of this political levy
2. Under the new rules, an additional burden will be placed on unions. Existing members will have to proactively opt-in to the levy and reassert their choice to do so every five years
3. This is despite the fact they are also able to withdraw their contributions at any time!

6) The Trades Union regulator will become judge, jury and executioner rather than a neutral mediator:

1. The role of the Certification Officer (CO) – an independent regulator of trade union activity – is currently respected among employers and trade unions as an independent arbiter, but under the new rules they will be able to investigate trade unions even if they have received no complaints of malpractice, make a decision based on their own investigation, and then fine unions accordingly.
2. They'll also be able to act on information from third-parties including ideologically driven press and politicians!
3. Worst, the Certification Officer will then be able to charge trade unions for the work undertaken by the CO’s office!

Protect the right to strike: Kill the Bill - just £5!

The Conservative Government’s proposed strike ballot thresholds: The challenge to trade unions - just £6!