Do unions care about skills?

1. Do unions care about skills? Prof Mark Stuart

2. Do unions care about skills: unfolding evidence base • Increased research effort on unions and learning and developing evidence base • Critical perspectives on: • Emphasis on supply side, how to engage with demand-side • Focus of learning interests – employer/individual • Potential for union renewal? • Effort seen as novel, but hampered by major challenges given weak regulatory environment • Despite this, union efforts can make a difference

3. Effect of union learning on members • Rapid rise of ULR network delivering new ‘service’ • Large take-up of learning – in some cases supported by paid time-off • Learning centre network to support this (some novel environments, construction) • Evolving learning cultures • Latent demand for learning – and union role can encourage this further • But, • not all members benefiting • Proportion of ULRs inactive/ insufficient support from employers • Focus on lower level skills/ disconnect with working practices

4. ULRs as an organising story • Growth of network in itself impressive – ahead of targets • Around third ‘new activists’ • Potential to recruit new members • Examples of learning organisers • ULRs becoming embedded in rule books, branch structures etc • But: • Separate activity from ‘traditional’ industrial relations in many workplaces • Some degree of ULR uncertainty about role • Still some disconnect to wider organising agenda in many unions

5. Sustaining and developing: levers? • Bargaining over learning has increased, but still low base – higher where ULRs • Agenda developing through learning partnerships and agreements • Often explicitly divorced from broader bargaining agenda, although evidence of positive spill overs. • Potential for influence outside the workplace – networks of local providers; Sectors Skills Council and SSA • Evaluation of SSA questioned ‘mechanisms for collective action’ • Engaging employers will remain an ongoing challenge