Niyamath Parveez

Some of the most powerful people in British history have been aligned to trade unions and any keen follower of the working classes in the UK will be well aware of the power they used to hold. It is correct to use the past tense for talking about the scope and capabilities of the trade unions in Britain. Yes, there are still many different trade unions with a large membership but the power they have over firms and companies is a sorry amount compared to what they used to be able to do in their heyday. The Conservative government of the 1980s managed to dismantle and demolish the power and mystique that trade unions held and there has been very little seen from them since. Every so often, there will be a token rebellion or attempt at a strike but judging by results there is never too much to suggest that trade unions have the ability to change anything these days.

The latest move by trade unions to indicate that they have some gumption left in the United Kingdom is revolving around the issue of outsourcing and the fact that it can cause many of their members to lose their jobs. It is fair to say that in the current economic climate that outsourcing offers companies an excellent opportunity to reduce their labor costs and reduce their expenditure. This is obviously very appealing to the firm but it does not have to be explained why it is not in the interest of the employees. It also means that trade unions will have fewer members employed and less power in attracting people to join up with them. Which will ultimately lead to them having a reduced income level which means that the leaders of the trade unions will receive fewer perks and benefits that they are accustomed to. This means that outsourcing is a natural enemy to those who engage in outsourcing and it is not surprising to see so many of them attempt to make a stand against outsourcing.

GMB, Unison and Unite are three of the largest trade unions in Great Britain today and they have joined together to condemn the actions of the National Grid, who are in the process of outsourcing a number of their non-essential jobs out to India. The National Grid, who provide gas and power throughout Britain, are looking to move a great number of jobs out of the UK to India, a major offshore outsourcing player in the world market.

The fact that the National Grid have stated that this action is as much related to quality of service as opposed to cost has possibly enraged the trade unions even more and there is no doubt that this will form part of the protest that they are due to make against any possible decision to outsource UK jobs. On the 27th of July, National Grid will be hosting their annual general meeting and plans are already in motion to set up some form of protest to ensure that the board members and share holders are left with no doubt about the unpopularity of this move.