Criminalise trade union bullying says Grangemouth refinery operator

http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2014/jun/15/criminalise-trade-union-grangemouth-ineos

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Ineos, the chemical group at the centre of last year's acrimonious dispute at the Grangemouth refinery, has called on ministers to criminalise trade unions that use intimidation or bullying tactics.

The demand was made in a submission to the Carr review, which was set up in by the government in April to look at the law governing industrial disputes after disturbances at the Scottish plant.

Ineos says there should be unlimited civil liability for damages resulting from unlawful union actions that target individuals, suppliers and customers.

The firm is also urging the government to implement a law to extend the notice period that has to be given by trade unions from seven to 21 days to limit the safety risks associated with unplanned shutdowns for large manufacturing plants such as Grangemouth.

Jim Ratcliffe, the Ineos founder and chairman, says: "We cannot tolerate the thuggish intimidation of managers, suppliers and customers by out-of-control unions. Last year, one of UK's largest industrial sites nearly closed down because of reckless union actions."

The Ineos boss insists he is not asking for something that is not available in other countries: "We work with unions across the world. All we are asking is that UK unions accept they have a duty to behave in a proper and responsible way."

But the Unite union, which was in conflict with the company at Grangemouth, said the Ineos intervention was "unhelpful" given the need to rebuild good industrial relations at the facility, which used to be owned by BP and receives oil from North Sea fields.

"What Ineos is calling for is outside the scope and remit of the Carr review, which, in our view, was a political stunt set up at the time but from which the government has since rowed back from," said a union spokesman.

"This is not going top help matters for the future of Grangemouth where we are trying to rebuild a more productive relationship at a time when there is an exodus of staff."

Unite says it does not plan to engage with the review process itself, not least because it does not believe that Sir Bruce Carr QC, the man brought in to oversee it, is independent.

The TUC said the call for new measures was unnecessary. "The UK already has strict laws governing strikes and public order offences," a spokesman said. "Rather than waste taxpayers' money on a needless review, time would be better spent investigating how blacklisting was used by bad employers for many years to silence the unions' voice."

The Liberal Democrats have distanced themselves from the Carr review with business secretary Vince Cable saying any inquiry should look at employer abuses such as blacklisting as well as malpractice by unions.

The dispute at Grangemouth stemmed from the alleged victimisation of a Unite union official at the plant. This led to a strike threat by the workforce followed by Ineos management's decision to close temporarily the facility, which supplies 70% of the fuel sold at Scotland's petrol stations. The petrochemical plant was reopened when the 800-strong workforce agreed revised terms and conditions.

The inquiry was called by the government after claims by a senior manager at the Ineos chemical company that a mob of protesters were sent to his home, leaving him fearing for his safety. These and other tactics were said to have been organised by a "leverage team", which was seen by critics to be trying to bring back the union militancy of the 1970s and 80s.