From check‐off to direct debit? Trade union subscriptions in UK universities
| Pages | 265-277 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/01425459710176981 |
| Date | 01 June 1997 |
| Published date | 01 June 1997 |
| Author | Mark Baimbridge,Claire Simpson |
| Subject Matter | HR & organizational behaviour |
From check-off
to direct debit?
265
From check-off to direct
debit? Trade union
subscriptions in UK
universities
Mark Baimbridge
Department of Social and Economic Studies, University of Bradford,
Bradford, UK, and
Claire Simpson
Institute of Education Technology, The Open University, Milton Keynes,
UK
Introduction
A recent central feature of the UK labour market has been the shifting nature of
the relationship between trade unions and government with a key ideological and
economic tenant of successive conservative administrations and the enhancement
of markets forces. Within the context of the labour market a primary reason
identified for the failure of such markets to “clear” and wages to be “sticky” was
the prevailing rigid labour supply conditions. The chosen solution was the
limiting of trade union power as this was perceived as contributing to high wage
settlements, low productivity and unemployment (Paterson and Simpson, 1993).
Thus, since the Employment Act of 1980, a series of statutes have placed
restrictions on trade union activity progressively removing union immunities in
relation to secondary picketing, unofficial strikes and other forms of industrial
action together with the gradual withdrawal of statutory support for the closed
shop[1]. Moreover, changes in the economic and political climate during the past
two decades led political parties to increasingly intervene in areas hitherto
considered the private domain of trade unions and their membership. One aspect
of this intervention into previously autonomous union activity relates to their
administrative and financial structure concerning membership contributions
collected through the check-off system[2].
This study seeks to complement previous general studies, inter alia, Morris
and Willman, 1994a; Willman and Cave, 1994; Willman and Morris, 1995;
Willman et al., 1993; which examined union finances within the context of these
developments, together with those which have specifically featured the check-
off system (Atkinson and Hillage, 1994; Morris and Willman, 1994b). However,
the analysis of developments within context of industrial relations has been
curtailed through the paucity of union-specific studies. Rather, previous
research has relied on either aggregate time-series information when examining
issues such as union membership growth, density or concentration (Bain and Employee Relations, Vol. 19 No. 3,
1997, pp. 265-277. © MCB
University Press, 0142-5455
Received December 1996
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