Shift in workforce dynamic behind UK’s declining union membership

Somesh Jha

Fewer workers are joining trade unions in the United Kingdom as diminishing political support, employer hostility, and the changing nature of the workforce have led to declining union membership over the decades, according to experts.

Unions can collectively bargain with employers on behalf of workers for better employment terms, particularly wages. Last year, the trade union Unite struck a deal for over 2,000 workers at Manchester Airport, increasing their pay by up to 17 percent. However, declining membership trends point to their weakening power.

"The real decline in the working-class movement began at the end of the 1970s, often attributed to the election of the Conservative government under Margaret Thatcher, who was clearly elected on a platform for reducing union power," said Richard Saundry, visiting professor at Manchester Metropolitan University, in an interview.

Thatcher, who became prime minister in 1979, introduced laws to weaken the power of unions by implementing measures such as curbing strikes through voting ballots and penalising unlawful industrial action.

As labour unions began to lose their power, employers' attitudes changed, becoming more hostile, according to John Forth, Reader in Human Resource Management at Bayes Business School.