NO-STRIKE AGREEMENT
| IRELAND |
| NO-STRIKE AGREEMENT |
This term was traditionally used to describe a collective agreement which contained a clause specifying that industrial action should not take place unless and until certain procedural steps had been taken first; in other words, strikes or other action should only occur when a disputes procedure had been fully exhausted.
More recently the term has taken on a more literal meaning. A no-strike agreement is now often taken to refer to an agreement which has entirely ruled out the taking of industrial action; sometimes the agreement will point to alternative methods of dispute resolution, such as arbitration or a reference to the Labour Relations Commission for conciliation , and the Labour Court for a recommendation. Such agreements are still comparatively rare, but there are increasing numbers of examples nonetheless, and they may become a trend in the future. The first widely publicised no-strike agreement in this sense was that pushed through, against strong trade union resistance, by Packard Electric Ltd in Tallaght, Co. Dublin.
Please note: the European industrial relations glossaries were compiled between 1991 and 2003 and are not updated. For current material see the European industrial relations dictionary.