Unite declares ballot unlawful

Submitted by Matthew on 16 February, 2011 - 2:08

Unite has declared its own recent ballot of cabin crew workers, which returned a 78.5% majority in favour of strike action, unlawful.

This action sets a new and worrying precedent in the ongoing battle against Britain’s anti-union laws. If Unite, the country’s biggest union, is now so jumpy that it will do the bosses’ and courts’ work for them the ruling class will only grow in confidence.

Unite’s decision is all the more bizarre given that the last time BA attempted to seek a High Court injunction against their strike ballot, the union appealed and had the injunction overturned. Senior union figures blame a BA “assault” on the Electoral Reform Society, the independent scrutineers that oversaw the ballot for the climbdown. BA saw an opportunity to act against the union when it picked up on statements surrounding the recent strike on Unite’s website which appeared to link the ballot to the job cuts which sparked the 2010 dispute. In fact, this latest ballot is over sackings and victimisations which took place during last year’s strikes; according to the 1992 anti-union legislation, bosses can sack workers for striking for the same reason if a period of three months has elapsed since the first strike. Although Len McCluskey, Unite’s general secretary, doubted whether BA would actually attempt mass dismissals of strikers, the union felt the risk was not worth taking.

Unite are dealing with a belligerent and anti-union employer in BA boss Willie Walsh, and caution, stemming from a desire to protect its members’ jobs, is understandable. But to declare its own ballot illegal without even testing the employer’s resolve indicates that it is running scared from Walsh.

The union has said it plans to re-ballot its members; cabin crew workers, who have shown their will to fight by voting in such significant numbers for further strikes, must hope that their union shows more backbone next time.

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