Member Article

Figures published in May by the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) record a further decline in Trade Union membership in the UK. 

Comparable data is only available as far back as 1995, but shows a clear decline over that nearly 30-year period to a level where, as at 2022, the proportion of UK workers in a union has declined to 23.1% - the lowest figure recorded in that time period.   

At the same time, the turbulence caused by the well-publicised public sector strikes, such as in the rail and health sectors, has led to the highest number of working days being lost to strikes since the 80's. More than 2.4 million working days were lost during 2022!

Digging below the headline figures into some of the detail of the statistics in the DBT report is instructive. Close to half (48%) of employees who were trade union members had been with their current employer for 10 years or more, compared with under a quarter (24%) of non-union member employees. A comparison of union membership across the country shows a broad pattern of higher membership numbers the further away from London you get - with union membership in Northern Ireland bucking the overall national trend and increasing during 2022. This was the only geographic area in the UK to report an increase in membership numbers during 2022. 

While membership overall may be declining, it is clear that the importance of unions to those that remain members has, in some ways, never been higher.  The industrial relations picture remains incredibly fraught, and just last month the UN labour standards body, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) sent a warning shot to the UK Government, reminding it of the need to ensure that existing and prospective legislation is in conformity with international rules on freedom of association.   

This was a clear reference to the UK Government’s highly controversial proposal of new strike laws, including minimum service levels in the rail sector, which many commentators feel impinge on core legal rights such as the freedom of association and the right to strike. The Trade Union Congress described the ILO’s conclusions as “hugely embarrassing” for the UK Government. 

With the Government seemingly intent not just on pursuing the minimum service levels elements of the planned legislation but also seeking to: (i) increase the minimum notice period for industrial action from two weeks to four weeks; and (ii) raise the threshold for industrial action to require support from 50% of union members, the political battle between the government and the unions shows no signs of abating. As both teachers and rail workers pursue further strike action this month, the unions may have fewer members than previously, but their ability to impact both government policy and the lives of the public remains undiminished. 

 

 

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1158789/Trade_Union_Membership_UK_1995-2022_Statistical_Bulletin.pdf

 

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