Co-op Sound Sourcing - Freedom to Bargain Issues

Freedom of association means that workers are able to form or join groupings of their own choosing, including trade unions.

Collective bargaining means that these groups are able to negotiate with management, on behalf of workers on issues such as pay and working conditions. This includes allowing union membership where a union exists.

Trade union representatives, and workers representatives on Works Councils and other committees should be democratically elected from the workforce. Where no union exists, the employer should encourage the formation of a union, a works committee or other committees and participate in regular communication and discussion with these groups.

Where there are legal restrictions on freedom of association and collective bargaining, management should encourage the formation of works and other committees on which workers are represented and meet regularly with these committees.

Each year, hundreds of thousands of workers lose their jobs merely for attempting to organise a trade union. Throughout the world, millions of workers, often women and children, are forced towork against their will. The ICFTU fights against forced labour wherever it occurs. In many countries, workers are discriminated against for political, ethnic, religious or other reasons. The ICFTU attacks governments and employers that are responsible for such situations.