"Laws on union strike threshold set to be scrapped", 19 August 2024

The government is set to scrap higher thresholds for strike action introduced by the Conservatives.

It is understood Labour will reverse the changes, which took effect in 2017, as part of its planned overhaul of trade union laws.

Legislation to enact the changes will start its journey through Parliament before mid-October, ministers have promised.

[...]

The Trade Union Act, passed by the previous Conservative government, introduced a higher threshold for unions to meet to hold legal strike action, by including a minimum 50% turnout requirement.

For sectors such as education, health and transport, 40% of the entire membership has to support action for it to be legal.

[...]

A Labour source said the government was "turning the page on the Conservatives' failed, scorched-earth approach to industrial relations".

The source added that a "new era of partnership" between unions, employers and government would put the UK in line with "high-growth economies that benefit from more co-operation and less disruption".

The Labour government's new legislation will also get rid of rules introduced by the Conservatives last year limiting strike action by workers including teachers, firefighters and train workers.

[...]