New Labour Policy, Industrial Relations and the Trade Unions [Hardcover]

New Labour was outwardly hostile to trade unions and their concerns. Yet the Blair government worked closely with the TUC on several key employment reforms. Steve Coulter analyses the dimensions of the often fractious Labour-union partnership and shows how the TUC pursued an 'insider lobbying' route to influence the shape of New Labour's policies.List Of Tables 1. Introduction: Political Trade Unionism In A Cold Climate 2. The Political Economy Of UK Industrial Relations: A Theoretical And Historical Overview 3. Loosening Party-Union Ties: Clause 4 And OMOV 4. Insider Lobbying In Action: The TUC And New Labour's First Term Agenda 5. Political Unionism And Political Exchange In Labour's Second Term 6. Conclusion: Political Trade Unionism Reconsidered Notes Bibliography

Steve Coulters timely and very welcome book is directly relevant to this debate over trade union politics. The book examines the influence of British trade unions over government policy during the first two New Labour administrations from the late 1990s to mid-2000s. (Edmund Heery, Transfer, Vol. 22 (2), August, 2016)

Steve Coulter is LSE Fellow in the Political Economy of Europe at the London School of Economics, UK. This is a sophisticated yet highly readable account of relations between unions and political parties in today's hard economic times. The conclusion is important: neither centre-left politicians nor organised labour are prisoners of globalisation, but remain crucial political actors in the quest for a balance between efficiency and social justice. Bob Hanck?, London School of Economics, UK

It is often argued that trade unions now wield very little influence over governments in liberal market economies. Steve Coulter's original and highly readable research study of the New Labour period in the UK suggests, on the contrary, that with the appropriate leadership and strategy, unions remain a significant political force. John Kelly, BlS0