date: 29 January 2007

embargo: 00.01hrs Tuesday 30 January 2007

Union reps sacrifice careers for employee champion role

Exclusive new research from Personnel Today and the TUC today (Tuesday) reveals that a surprising 92% of union reps believe they are sacrificing their careers in order to represent their colleagues even though they enjoy a largely positive, professional working relationship with their organisations' HR departments.

More than nine in ten union reps (92%) responding to the survey think their career prospects have been hampered by their personal involvement with unions. Some 38% believe this is definitely the case and 54% believe it is possibly so.

Paul Nowak, national organiser at the TUC, says: 'Too many union reps feel their careers are put on the line because of their representative role. Finely worded policies are not enough - managers need to demonstrate practically that staff taking on reps roles will not lose out when it comes to career prospects, pay or development opportunities.'

Key findings from the research include:

• Only just over a third (36%) of HR professionals think that union reps careers are damaged by taking on union duties;
• Over half the HR professionals questioned (57%) agree that unions are an essential part of modern employer/employee relations and that unions are a 'force for good' (52%);
• On balance, a slim majority of HR professionals believe their organisations' employees would get a worse deal without their union and its reps.

While just under half (49%) of union reps believe that their employer values their role as a union rep, their greater concern is reflected in the fact that only 16% of them believe the government values that role.

Nowak continues: 'This survey shows that while many reps feel their role is valued and understood by management - few think that the government recognises the positive contribution they make in the workplace. The government can use its ongoing facilities review to show that it understands and values the role of the union rep."

Main findings:

The Personnel Today and TUC research shows that union reps and their HR contacts enjoy a largely positive, professional working relationship - though the union reps are slightly more critical than their HR counterparts.

On a scale of 0-10 (where 0 is completely broken down and 10 is excellent), HR professionals rate their working relationship with their main union at 6.7; while the union reps rate that same relationship at 5.6.

However, there are some disagreements and underlying tensions that threaten to destabilise the relationship.

Some 62% of union reps say that their contacts in the HR department are pleasant/easy to deal with, compared with 69% of HR professionals who say that their contacts at the union are pleasant/easy to deal with.

This difference is more marked on questions of: professionalism (47% of union reps agree that HR is professional in its approach, while 58% of HR professionals agree that their main union is professional in its approach); openness (36% v 51%); and quality of negotiating skills (31% v 55%).

And nearly half (48%) of union reps say their view of their employer's HR department has got worse in the past five years. Only 20% say HR is better. This compares with 33% of HR professionals expressing the view that unions have improved, and only 23% saying they have got worse.

But HR professionals do reserve some criticism for the unions. Many (43%) believe they get involved in issues that do not concern them; and 37% believe employees do not get good value from their unions.

There is certainly scope for better communication, with a substantial number of both parties suggesting that the other uses 'unhelpful language'.

NOTES TO EDITORS:

- Workplace representatives: A review of their facilities and facility time was published on 4 January, and the consultation period runs until 20 March 2007.

See: http://www.dti.gov.uk/consultations/page36338.htm

- Personnel Today and the TUC surveyed 583 HR professionals who have regular contact with their organisations' union reps, and 524 union reps to discover their views on the working relationships between employers and unions. The survey took place in December 2006.

- Today the TUC is also publishing research showing the positive contribution that unions can make to company performance. The report, 'Making the difference: Union representatives and company performance' suggests that unions can help organisations develop the relations of trust between employer and employee that are central to achieving high performance. The report is available at http://www.tuc.org.uk/extras/makingthedifference.doc

Contacts: Rob Willock, group editor, Personnel Today: 0777 617 2004/Paul Nowak, nationalorganiser, TUC: 0788 754 1461

Press release (800 words) issued 30 Jan 2007