Strike law and the Trade Union Act 2016



Here is a summary of the key changes to strike law introduced by the Trade Union Act 2016 (TUA 16). The changes affected all industrial action ballots opened on or after 1 March 2017:



• at least 50% of those entitled to vote must participate in the strike ballot, and a majority of those voting must vote in favour (see page 184). “Not voting” counts as a vote against the strike;




• for strikes in “important public services”, at least 50% of those entitled to vote must participate in the ballot, and at least 40% of those entitled to vote must vote in favour (see page 184);





• period of validity of ballot is limited to six months (or nine months if both sides agree) (see page 189);





• amount of notice of industrial action the union must give to the employer has doubled from seven to 14 days (see page 192), giving employers extra time to prepare;




• the matters in dispute must be “summarised” on the ballot paper (see page 187);





• the type(s) of action short of strike must be specified and the likely length of the action must be indicated on the ballot paper (see page 187);




• new requirement to appoint a picket supervisor willing to give their contact details to the police (see page 193);




• new duty on unions to make an annual report of all industrial action endorsed by the union, added to the existing annual return to the Certification Officer (see page 201); and 



• radical overhaul of the role of the Certification Officer, with wide-ranging powers and penalties (not yet in force — see Chapter 5).



The 40% ballot threshold for strikes in “important public services” does not apply in Wales in relation to strikes in devolved public services: the NHS, education, local government and the fire service. These thresholds were disapplied by the Welsh Assembly under the Trade Union Act (Wales) 2017, see page 137. 



The TUA 16 does not apply in Northern Ireland.