The Trade Union Act 2016 (Commencement No. 3 and Transitional) Regulations 2017

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations bring into force specified provisions of the Trade Union Act 2016 (c. 15) (“the 2016 Act”). These are the third commencement regulations made under the 2016 Act. Certain provisions came into force on the passing of the 2016 Act.

Regulation 2 commences a number of provisions of the 2016 Act that—

• require 50% turnout in all industrial action ballots;

• require 40% support in industrial action ballots in important public services;

• require information to be included on the voting paper;

• require information to be provided to members about the result of the industrial action ballot;

• require information to be included about industrial action in the union’s annual return to the Certification Officer;

• provide for two weeks’ notice to be given to employers of industrial action;

• provide for the expiry of the mandate for industrial action;

• sets out the requirements on unions for the supervision of picketing;

• require persons who join a trade union after a transition period to make an active choice before contributing to a union’s political fund;

• require information to be included about expenditure of a union’s political funds in the union’s annual return to the Certification Officer;

• enable a Minister of the Crown to make regulations requiring relevant public sector employers with one or more trade union representatives to publish information relating to facility time;

• enable a Minister of the Crown to make regulations specifying relevant public sector employers for the purposes of restricting the deduction of union subscriptions from wages in the public sector;

• provide for enforcement by the Certification Officer of new annual return requirements in relation to industrial action and political funds; and

• make minor and consequential amendments.