CHANGES IN WAGE-SETTING ARRANGEMENTS AND TRADE-UNION PRESENCE IN THE 1980S

In this paper we detail the results of a retrospective survey of changes in trade union and wage‐setting arrangements in the 1980s for a sample of 558 UK companies. Our key findings are as follows. (1) Complete derecognition of unions in a firm was rare even in firms with low trade union density. (2) Partial derecognition in multi‐plant firms was more common. Some 13 per cent of companies with recognized unions in 1984 had had at least partial derecognition by 1990. (3) Large falls in trade union density within a firm have also been rare, though small but observable declines have been commonplace. (4) The coverage of the closed shop has substantially declined, and this decline has been most marked in the last five years. Around one‐quarter of firms with recognized unions in 1990, however, still had closed‐shop arrangement for at least part of their work‐force. (5) There has been no clear decline in the prevalence of multi‐unionism or multiple bargaining units. (6) There has been a significant move away from national/industry‐wide bargaining, towards negotiations at the individual company or more often the establishment level. (7) In the absence of collective bargaining there have been clear moves away from wage‐setting by formal external links, such as wages councils and multi‐employer agreements, and even away from worker consultation towards more managerial discretion. (8) In deciding wage settlements, managers are increasingly influenced by company performance and less by multi‐employer wage settlements. © 1991 Blackwell Publishing Ltd / London School of Economics