The Tories introduced the 50% strike ballot threshold to make industrial action harder. MATT WRACK argues that a Labour government has no justification for leaving it on the statute book
THESE are extraordinary times. As the Tory government teeters from one crisis to another, and the markets tumble, the trade unions are on the move.
It feels like we are on the brink of a major struggle between the labour movement and those in power, but for many, it is simply a battle for survival.
The last six months have seen an intensification of industrial militancy across a number of sectors, notably on the railways and London Underground, among postal and telecom workers as well as dockers in Liverpool and Felixstowe. Without doubt, the unions are rediscovering their strength.
One hundred years after 1.7m workers shut the country down in defence of the miners, the struggles that sparked the 1926 General Strike are still with us – and will be honoured on London’s May Day march this year, writes MARY ADOSSIDES
A past confrontation permanently shaped the methods the state will use to protect employers against any claims by their employees, writes MATT WRACK, but unions are readying to face the challenge
Trade unionists must raise our voices not only for justice and against occupation, but also to protect our fundamental right to protest, writes LOUISE REGAN, ahead of a not-to-be-missed PSC conference
Labour’s watered-down legislation won’t protect us from unfair dismissal or ban some zero-hours contracts until 2027 — leaving millions of young people vulnerable to the populist right’s appeal, warns TUC young workers chair FRASER MCGUIRE


