Protecting the right to strike
Green councillors brought a motion to the full Council meeting on 16th July asking that Norwich City Council protects the right of its employees to take industrial action. The motion was passed unanimously.
The motion, proposed by Cllr Hoechner and seconded by Cllr Stonard from the Labour group, asks the Chief Executive of the Council to agree to exercise its discretion to not issue work notices under the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act 2023. It also asks the Leader of the Council to encourage Norfolk County Council to take similar steps to protect its employees’ right to strike.
The motion was suggested to the Council’s political groups by the Norwich & District Trades Union Council.
The Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act 2023 brought in under the past conservative government has severely restricted the right to strike. Under this legislation, employees in certain key sectors can be required to work, even if they have democratically voted to strike, and lawfully be sacked if they refuse to comply.
Amnesty International says that the Act “gives ministers sweeping powers to impose minimum service levels after whatever consultations they see fit,” thereby ignoring “key safeguards that protect workers’ rights under international law.”[1]
Cllr Hoechner says: “The right to strike is a fundamental freedom protected by international law. It is vital for the balance of power in the workplace and essential for keeping pay inequalities from growing further. The past conservative government has chipped away at this fundamental freedom. Let’s do what we can locally to protect the right to strike of everyone working for our Council.”
The incoming Labour government has pledged to repeal the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act within its first 100 days in office.[2]
The Trades Union Congress has been campaigning against the Act, calling it “malicious, unnecessary and unworkable”.[3]