Institute of Employment Rights

#HeartUnions Week:

HeartUnions week runs from the 9th to the 15th of Feb - a ‘chance to tell the story about why unions are vital for everyone at work & encourage people who aren’t yet in a union to join.’ www.ier.org.uk/news/heartun...

Listened to the new podcast from the IER yet?

John Hendy KC & Nicola Countouris discuss what’s missing in the #EmploymentRightsAct, including:

👉 sectorial collective bargaining
👉 single worker status
👉 a positive right to strike

Listen here: www.ier.org.uk/the-ier-podc...

Join our #EmploymentRightsBill 2 campaign rally with
@unionfreedom.bsky.social in #London on 21 March

Speakers: 🔊 Matt Wrack @nasuwt-official.bsky.social 🔊Cad Jones @ieruk.bsky.social 🔊 @sarahwoolley1.bsky.social @bfawu.bsky.social

Sponsored by @thompsons.law

RSVP bit.ly/ERB2Rally

#StrikeMap

Victory for ASLEF campaign to reduce the age at which train drivers can start.

“ASLEF has been campaigning for many years to lower the age at which drivers can start training”

www.ier.org.uk/news/victory...

Text reads RMT. RMT Logo, Picture of RMT demonstration. Text reads at bottom: Finishing the Job: Demand an Employment Rights Bill #2. Strike Map logo, Campaign for Trade Union Freedom logo.

BREAKING NEWS 🚨| @rmtunion.bsky.social join the campaign for an #EmploymentRightsBill2.

Join us in #London on 21 March for a campaign action rally: bit.ly/ERB2Rally

#EmploymentRightsBill #ERB1 #ERB2 #EmploymentRights #Strikemap

Government launches ERA consultations on fire and rehire, tipping, union recognition and electronic balloting.

The government are seeking views on a number of areas related to the Employment Rights Act 2025: www.ier.org.uk/news/governm...

What does the Employment Rights Act 2025 really mean for workers?

Launching Ep 1 of the IER’s latest podcast ‘Working Life’, Dr Nicola Countouris is joined by Lord John Hendy KC to discuss what’s in, what’s missing, and what still needs to change.

Listen now! www.ier.org.uk/the-ier-podc...

Govt publishes updated timetable for key Employment Rights Act changes:

🔵 Majority of the Trade Union Act 2016 repealed on 18 Feb
🔵Fair Work Agency established on 7 April
🔵Fire and Rehire delayed from Oct '26 to Jan '27

See the full timetable here 👇
www.ier.org.uk/news/governm...

🛑 Birmingham City Council seeks injunction to ban ‘Megapickets’ and solidarity action.

Move would effectively ban protesters from delaying refuse lorries from leaving depots & comes just days after the largest #Megapicket of the dispute. www.ier.org.uk/news/birming...

New course from GFTU Educational Trust, in association with IER - accredited by Birkbeck College, University of London:

Empowering Workers - a Trade Union Certificate in Labour Law and the Labour Movement.

4 modules | 19th March - 20th September 2026.

Details here 👉 gftuet.org.uk/courses/empo...

Celebrating 50 years since the Employment Protection Act 1975.

Morrish Solicitors mark the Employment Protection Act 1975, fifty years after it came into force: www.ier.org.uk/news/celebra...

Wapping was never about technology: it was a state-backed assault on trade unionism AFTER 40 years I hope that I can still add a few comments regarding the Wapping dispute which perhaps puts it into a broader context.The Tory media described the dispute as primarily regarding the int...

Wapping was never about technology: it was a state-backed assault on trade unionism.

“The printers at Wapping did not win the dispute, but they did not lose their dignity, their unity or the truth of their cause.”

Tony Dubbins on a defining struggle: morningstaronline.co.uk/article/wapp...

TikTok Moderators launch legal action over union busting, following 400 job cuts days before recognition ballot.

ier.org.uk/news/tiktok-...

Unfair dismissal: statutory cap to be removed from 1st January 2027

Government add Unfair Dismissal Factsheet to Employment Rights Act materials online. See breakdown here: www.ier.org.uk/news/unfair-...

Birmingham City Council suspends all refuse services due to @strikemap.org’s ‘Megapicket 3-D’

Organisers say ‘Megapicket 3-D’ will not be the last unless @bhamcitycouncil.bsky.social backs down on proposed pay cuts. www.ier.org.uk/news/birming...

Birmingham bin strike megapicket live as city collections axed A third 'megapicket' over bin strikes is underway in Birmingham this morning

Birmingham bin strike megapicket live as city collections axed

birminghammail.co.uk/news/midland...

#Megapicket #StrikeMap #Megapicket3D #Megapicket3 #Birmingham #BirminghamBinStrike #BrumBinStrike

Hundreds of Barnsley Hospital workers begin industrial action ballot over Fire and Rehire threat.

The majority of those affected are nursing staff working on the wards: www.ier.org.uk/news/hundred...

Retired Prison Officers hit by failing pension scheme administration

Capita took over the running of the Civil Service Pension Scheme in late 2025 and the system has been dogged with problems since. Via POA: www.ier.org.uk/news/retired...

Hospital cleaners win historic race discrimination appeal against Great Ormond Street Hospital.

The Employment Appeals Tribunal (EAT) has upheld the claim by 80 GOSH cleaners that the 18-month delay in transferring them onto full NHS terms was unlawful: www.ier.org.uk/news/hospita...

Rockstar Games workers denied interim relief as union busting case goes to Tribunal.

Rockstar could still be found guilty of unfair dismissal when the case goes to trial - says the IWGB union.

www.ier.org.uk/news/rocksta...

Despite the Employment Rights Act 2025, the UK is still falling short of international labour standards, say European Committee of Social Rights: www.ier.org.uk/news/uk-stil...

From Westminster to Santiago and back: what the UK’s and Chilean Minimum Service regulations teaches us about Authoritarianism and Democracy at Work. Fascinating new blog on the IER website by Manchester University’s Ricardo Buendia.

www.ier.org.uk/comments/fro...

8 in 10 parents trust education staff on AI as unions set out roadmap.

Major poll reveals 8 in 10 parents with a child in school or college (80%) trust educators to make decisions about AI in education.

www.ier.org.uk/news/8-in-10...

Empowering Workers - a Trade Union Certificate in Labour Law & the Labour Movement.

A brand new course examining labour law & labour movements as well as their history, seeking to provide insight into how & why the law operates as it does.

Sign up here: gftuet.org.uk/courses/empo...

Government publish Employment Rights Act draft codes of practice.

Documents published in advance of changes to be implemented on the 18th February 2026: www.ier.org.uk/news/governm...

Assessing the legal & economic implications of the Employment Rights Act 2025.

Analysis by Christine Carter (Cambridge Uni) Simon Deakin (Cambridge Uni), Conor McCormack (Dept for Business & Trade) and
Kamelia Pourkermani (Cambridge Uni): assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/695e23...

Stronger parental leave rights “to give millions of working families the security they deserve”

Government announce new day one rights to parental leave, which are set to enter force from April: www.ier.org.uk/news/stronge...

Record levels of work-related stress in Britain’s workplaces.

New TUC survey reveals unprecedented levels of workplace stress: almost 8 in 10 union reps cite stress as top concern:

www.ier.org.uk/news/tuc-rec...

Sign up for our Case Law Updates in London & Manchester - Feb / Mar 2026. Join us as a team of barristers from Old Square Chambers guide us through recent significant cases. These events are always very popular, so make sure you register asap, here: www.ier.org.uk/institute-ev...

Department of Work and Pensions ‘running scared’ of strike ballot say @pcsunion.bsky.social.

A strike ballot in the DWP has been postponed until 19 January, after the employer used the Tories’ anti-trade union legislation to block the ballot.

www.ier.org.uk/news/departm...