UK trade union law breaches workers' rights, Supreme Court rules

But on Wednesday, after a nearly five-year legal battle, Britain's highest court upheld Mercer's appeal in a landmark decision on trade union rights. Mercer said she was "delighted" with the ruling, while her trade union Unison's general secretary Christina McAnea called it "a victory for every employee who might one day want to challenge something bad or unfair their employer has done".

British trade union law unlawfully fails to protect workers from sanctions short of dismissal for going on strike, the United Kingdom's Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday in a significant victory for workers' rights. Fiona Mercer, a care-worker and trade unionist from the northwest of England, took legal action against her employer after she was suspended in 2019 during planned strike action.

In 2022, the Court of Appeal in London ruled British trade union law may be incompatible with the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) but nonetheless dismissed Mercer's case after an intervention by the British government. But on Wednesday, after a nearly five-year legal battle, Britain's highest court upheld Mercer's appeal in a landmark decision on trade union rights.

Mercer said she was "delighted" with the ruling, while her trade union Unison's general secretary Christina McAnea called it "a victory for every employee who might one day want to challenge something bad or unfair their employer has done". "No one strikes on a whim," McAnea said in a statement, adding: "The government must now close this loophole promptly. It won't cost any money and isn't difficult to do."

A spokesperson for Britain's Department of Business and Trade, however, was equivocal on whether the law would be amended, saying "the government will consider the judgment carefully before responding". The spokesperson added there was evidence workers are "perfectly able to take part in lawful industrial action to defend their interests without being put off by concerns about unfair or unreasonable sanctions imposed by employers".

UPCOMING CASES Under UK trade union law, workers who are dismissed for taking part in lawful strike action are protected and can sue for unfair dismissal, but those who face disciplinary action short of dismissal have no express protection.

The Supreme Court said this meant employers could impose any sanction short of dismissal for striking, which "encourages and legitimises unfair and unreasonable conduct by employers". Judge Ingrid Simler ruled that this puts the UK in breach of the ECHR. She added: "It is for parliament to decide whether to legislate and, if so, the scope and nature of such protection."

Wednesday's landmark decision follows a protracted period of industrial action by workers in many industries, who have gone on strike to improve their pay and conditions. It also comes before two further Supreme Court appeals involving trade union rights in the next four weeks, including a key case next week about employers' right to use so-called fire and rehire tactics, which allows them to change contract terms.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)