Find out about trade unions, including what they are and the benefits of being a trade union member. Show A trade union is an organisation made up of members (a membership-based organisation) and its membership must be made up mainly of workers. One of a trade union's main aims is to protect and advance the interests of its members in the workplace. Most trade unions are independent of any employer. However, trade unions try to develop close working relationships with employers. This can sometimes take the form of a partnership agreement between the employer and the trade union which identifies their common interests and objectives. Trade unions:
Trade union recognitionEmployers which recognise a union will negotiate with it over members' pay and conditions. Many recognition agreements are reached voluntarily, sometimes with the help of the Labour Relations Agency. If agreement can't be reached and the organisation employs more than 20 people, a union may apply for statutory recognition. To do so, it must first request recognition from the employer in writing. If this is unsuccessful, the union can apply to the Industrial Court for a decision. In considering the union's application, the Court must assess many factors including the level of union membership and the presence of any other unions. Often, the Court will organise a ballot among the affected workforce to decide whether recognition should be awarded. Throughout the process, the emphasis is on reaching voluntary agreement. Collective bargainingIf a union is formally recognised by an employer, it can negotiate with the employer over terms and conditions. This is known as 'collective bargaining'. For collective bargaining to work, unions and employers need to agree on how the arrangement is to operate. They might, for example, make agreements providing for the deduction of union subscriptions from members' wages; who is to represent workers in negotiations and how often meetings will take place. Both these agreements on procedure and agreements between employers and unions changing the terms applying to workers (like a pay increase for example) are called 'collective agreements'. Your contract of employment will probably set out which collective agreements cover you. It's possible that a union may negotiate on your behalf even if you're not a member. Joining a trade unionSome workers join a trade union because they believe that a union can:
Union members have the right to be accompanied to a discipline or grievance hearing by a trade union representative (although trade unions are not compelled to provide this). All employees, regardless of whether they are union members or not, are entitled to be accompanied by a work colleague.
Recognised unions also have rights to consultation where redundancies or a transfer of business are proposed. There is a regular subscription cost for union membership and different rates may apply to trainees and part-timers. Unions will not normally help with problems which pre-date membership. How to join a unionIf you want to join a recognised union in your workplace, you could approach a representative for information like the shop steward. Or, contact the Northern Ireland Committee of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) to find out which union is relevant to you.
Trade union-related rightsThe law gives you the right to join a trade union wherever you work. This right applies whether a union has been recognised or not. You're protected from being disadvantaged for being a union member. Specifically trade union membership is an unlawful reason for:
The law gives you the right not to join a trade union. The same protection applies to you as it does to union members. In particular, employers are not permitted to operate a 'closed shop' (that is, make all workers join the employer's preferred union). An employer can't deduct payments from you, to a union or charity in lieu of union membership without your permission. BlacklistingYou can’t be discriminated against because you are in a union or because of your union activity. With rare exceptions, it’s also illegal to compile, use, sell or supply a ‘blacklist’ of union members that will be used to discriminate against you.
Trade union activitiesWhen a union is recognised by an employer, members have the right to time off at an appropriate time to take part in trade union activities. These may include:
You don’t have the right to be paid for any time spent taking industrial action. Where you can get helpThe Labour Relations Agency (LRA) and Advice NI offer free, confidential and impartial advice on employment rights issues. More useful links
Learn about the role of unions in the workplace and about bargaining with unions. Unions in the workplaceUnions are bodies that represent the interests of workers in particular industries or occupations. Unions play an important role in the workplace. Some of their key roles include being able to resolve workplace issues by being a voice for employees and acting as a bargaining representative during bargaining negotiations. Other responsibilities of unions include ensuring employers are meeting their minimum obligations and looking into suspected breaches of:
Bargaining with unionsBargaining is a process where employers and employees negotiate the terms and conditions of an enterprise agreement. Employers and employees can be represented by a bargaining representative during this process. Normally the bargaining representative for employees will be a union. All bargaining representatives and other parties involved in the process have to bargain in good faith. They also have to follow rules about disclosing benefits that they or a person related to them might get from a proposed enterprise agreement that they're a bargaining representative for. This means that if unions and employers are bargaining for an enterprise agreement, and either of them (or a related person) will or could get a financial benefit from something in the proposed agreement, they have to make sure that everyone else in the bargaining process knows about it. This includes employees who will be covered by the agreement. If either the union or employer has to disclose a benefit, they have to create a 'disclosure document' that says:
A union who creates a disclosure document has to give it to the employer, who then has to provide it to the employees. An employer who creates a disclosure document has to give it to their employees. The Registered Organisations Commission has detailed information and advice about these rules. They are the independent regulator of unions and employer associations. Read more on their corrupting benefits page. The Fair Work Commission provides information on: Tools and resourcesRelated information
Problems can happen in any workplace. If you have a workplace problem, we have tools and information to help you resolve it. Check out our Fixing a workplace problem section for practical information about:
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What are the advantages of unionization? check all that apply.
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