Working for the Union
British Trade Union Officers

A study of the relationship between full-time union officials and shop stewards across the whole of British industry in 1986–91.

John Kelly (Author), Edmund Heery (Author)

9780521115407, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 2 July 2009

248 pages, 46 tables
22.9 x 15.2 x 1.4 cm, 0.37 kg

"This book is destined to become a classic of the industrial relations literature...this book belongs on the shelf of every serious industrial relations scholar." Industrial Relations

This book is a study of the relationship between full-time union officials and shop stewards across the whole of British industry (public and private, manufacturing and services) in 1986–91. It is the first major study of union officials for 20 years, and one of the most detailed studies of workplace collective bargaining and union organisation following the recession of the early 1980s. In the wake of recession, union decline, industrial restructuring, anti-union legislation, and changes in union policies (towards a new realism), Britain is said by some commentators to be entering a new era of industrial relations. This book provides a unique body of evidence that throws new light on this claim, and casts serious doubt on its validity. It combines survey, interview, questionnaire and observation data and thus overcomes the well known limitations of both large-scale surveys and individual case studies.

Preface
Part I. Introduction: 1. Introduction: trade unions and industrial relations
2. Theoretical analyses and empirical studies of trade union officers
Part II. The Parameters of Union Work: 3. Full-time officer organisation
4. Employment relations
5. Work relations
Part III. The Full-Time Officer at Work: 6. Organising
7. Bargaining objectives
8. The bargaining process
9. Dealing with managers
Part IV. Conclusions: 10. Working for the union.

Subject Areas: Business & management [KJ]