Collective Bargaining

Collective bargaining is when an employer and a recognised trade union negotiate  on one or more of the following:

  • Terms and conditions of employment and conditions of work
  • Hiring, firing and suspension
  • Allocation of work
  • Discipline
  • Union membership
  • Union recognition
  • Facilities agreements
  • Procedures and the collective bargaining machinery itself

In the context of compulsory trade union recognition under Schedule A1 of the Trade Unions and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992, collective bargaining refers to negotiations concerning pay, hours and holidays. See also Employee Representative Guide for non-union workplaces, How to form a staff association or trade union]