Surmounting the Trade Union Act 2016: A case study of using local branch data and communication systems to ‘get the vote out’ in the UK higher education sector

Richards, James; Ellis, Vaughan

Abstract

The proposed paper/presentation engages with how trade unions can mobilise membership data and communication systems to organise workers into getting the vote out (GTVO) for industrial action ballots. The proposed paper/presentation hinges on a case study from the UK higher education (HE) sector where turnout for industrial action ballots has historically been much lower than what is required of the Trade Union Act 2016. The specific focus of the paper is one HE branch of the University and College Union (UCU) that twice managed to clearly surmount the 50 per cent voting threshold of the Trade Union Act 2016 in one year (2018). In both instances the branch that forms the basis of the case (UKHEI) ‘topped’ the voter turnout rate in ballots related to pension scheme reforms and more lately on pay/equality. In the first ballot the wider turnout was 58 per cent and at UKHEI it was 77 per cent. In the second ballot the wider turnout was 42 per cent and at UKHEI it was 64 per cent. The proposed paper/presentation is based on an analysis of UKHEI’s UCU activities surrounding the two ballots, focusing specifically on how GTVO was mobilised via member data and a range of communication systems. The findings have the potential to provide a GTVO model for HE and wider public sector trade unions, but may also be of wider and more general value to trade unions organising in non-traditional settings.

Citation

Richards, J., & Ellis, V. (2019, February). Surmounting the Trade Union Act 2016: A case study of using local branch data and communication systems to ‘get the vote out’ in the UK higher education sector. Paper presented at STUC Research Conference: Behind Closed Circuits: Data, digitalisation and trade union tactics, Glasgow

• Presentation Conference Type: Conference Paper (unpublished)
• Conference Name: STUC Research Conference: Behind Closed Circuits: Data, digitalisation and trade union tactics
• Start Date: Feb 13, 2019
• Deposit Date: May 7, 2019
• Keywords: union organising, industrial action,
• Public URL: http://researchrepository.napier.ac.uk/Output/1583158