The Government’s controversial legal move on providing minimum levels of service during strikes will be strongly criticised by unions at the TUC Congress, which opens on Sunday.The Government took forward the legislation following a year of unprecedented industrial action by hundreds of thousands of workers including nurses, teachers, civil servants and railway staff.
The Fire Brigades Union will press for a campaign of mass non-compliance, up to and including industrial action. “They are ploughing ahead despite their anti-union drive being slapped down the by the UN workers’ rights watchdog, and their recent High Court defeat over the use of agency workers during strikes.“That’s why we will fight this legislation all the way – exploring all avenues, including legal routes.”Paddy Lillis, general secretary of the shop workers’ union Usdaw, said: “Our weak employment rights framework is at the heart of the cost-of-living crisis.