§ 107. Sir J. Lucasasked the First Lord of the Admiralty whether he is aware that in all Admiralty dockyards the right to negotiate on piece and job work was recently withdrawn from the Ship Joiners and Allied Furniture Trade Union, which is an approved association of industrial civil servants, and has been handed over to the Amalgamated Society of Woodworkers, which is not such an approved association; whether he proposes to modify this arrangement; and whether he will give an assurance that no further steps will be taken by his Department to weaken the present position of Civil Service approved associations as regards their right to negotiate with his Department on matters affecting their members.
Mr. DugdalePiece-work schemes in His Majesty's dockyards are normally negotiated with the trade union side of the departmental Whitley organisation. The Amalgamated Society of Woodworkers, a trade union represented on the appropriate Whitley Council, has recently presented a proposed scheme for joiner's work, which is under examination. The union's right to negotiate such a scheme cannot be questioned, and since it is impracticable to work simultaneously to two distinct schemes covering the same ground, it has been necessary to give notice terminating, with due formality, an older scheme for joiner's work which was inaugurated by agreement with a non-Whitley approved association.
The right of non-Whitley bodies to negotiate with the Department has always been limited by the pledges which have been given by successive Governments to conduct negotiations in matters affecting pay and conditions of service of Government workpeople by means of Whitley organisations.