Fair Work: action plan

13. Collective Bargaining

The Scottish Government has made a clear commitment to promote collective bargaining through the inclusion of an employee voice indicator, measured by collective bargaining coverage, within the National Performance Framework, and will work in partnership with the STUC to achieve increased coverage. The initial action on this indicator will primarily focus on exploring how this could be achieved across four key sectors: social care; early years and child care; hospitality; and construction.

As an initial step, in early 2019, the Scottish Government will commission a mapping exercise of existing industry standards and UK national and collective agreements.

We will also work with the STUC to:

• Consider and respond to the Fair Work Convention's recommendations for ensuring that Fair Work is embedded in the delivery of social care services including the procurement process.
• Create a forum in Early Learning and Childcare to explore sectoral bargaining as a long-term aim with implementation of real Living Wage being the first step. Membership should include the Scottish Government, employers and trade unions.
• Help to facilitate dialogue between key employers and trade unions in the hospitality sector to explore the benefits and challenges of implementing Fair Work practices, including establishing collective agreements. The Fair Fringe Charter is a good example of collective action to improve Fair Work practices in hospitality.
• Support union access to workplaces, encourage adherence to existing agreements and support the development of new collective agreements as an integral part of Fair Work First. This will allow procurement, government support and economic development to all to play a role in promoting collective bargaining coverage wherever possible.