The 10% trigger
[ch 4: page 22]Employers must initiate negotiations if they receive a valid employee request for an ICE arrangement (regulation 7). To be valid it must consist of: either a single request made by at least 10% of the employees in the undertaking; or a number of separate requests (on the same or different days) which when taken together make up at least 10% (provided they were all made within a period of six months).
The evidence can be collected through a petition or postcards or any other means. Here’s one example: “We the undersigned request that our employer Macmillan Publishers Ltd initiates negotiations for an information and consultation agreement in accordance with the Information and Consultation of Employees Regulations 2004, Regulation 14”.
The 10% trigger includes a lower limit of 15 employees and an upper limit of 2,500. It can be a significant hurdle in a large undertaking, especially if it is split up over a number of different sites.