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3.15 Deputy G.P. Southern of the Minister for Transport and Technical Services regarding the dispute over union recognition at CTPlus:
What action has the Minister taken, or will he take, to bring the dispute over union recognition at CT Plus to a satisfactory resolution as soon as possible and, if not, why?
Deputy K.C. Lewis (The Minister for Transport and Technical Services):
I would refer Members to my answer to Deputy Southern 's written question 7603, and I believe this has largely been covered by my response to Deputy S. Pitman earlier. I would also refer to Code 1 of the Employment Relations (Jersey) Law 2007, which includes the following in paragraphs 3, 4 and 12; 3: "A trade union is recognised by an employer where it is agreed that the employer and union will engage in collective bargaining for any purposes"; 4: "Collective bargaining is a process of conducting negotiations in relation to matters relevant to the workplace"; and 12: "Where an employee or group of employees are represented by a trade union and the union seeks recognition from an employer with respect to these employees, then it is recommended that both parties engage in a process of discussion and negotiation with a view to agreeing the most appropriate way forward to formal recognition. The J.A.C.S. is available to assist in this process when these parties so request."
- Deputy G.P. Southern :
Does the Minister consider that, since he chose and promoted this company based partly on their good record on employee relations, including union representation, he was misled?
Deputy K.C. Lewis :
No. As previously mentioned, I believe they run up to, I think, 19 franchises in the U.K. and there does not appear to be a problem. I repeat, it is going through the process at the moment; if agreement cannot be reached, it will go to J.A.C.S. and I also repeat I would hope for a speedy resolution.
- Deputy G.P. Southern :
Will the Minister accept that hope may not be sufficient in this particular case and will he give his best endeavours, which is a phrase he likes to use, to ensure a resolution in an appropriate timescale?
Deputy K.C. Lewis :
It is not in my hands. I believe that there is a process, as I have mentioned previously, that they can go through. They have had, I believe, 2 meetings at the moment, from which have parted, I believe, amicably, I am informed, if they cannot reach agreement it goes to J.A.C.S.
- Deputy G.P. Southern :
Could the Minister explain to Members exactly what he understands is the company's objection to recognising the union immediately, because they definitely represent the vast majority of all employees employed by CT Plus?
Deputy K.C. Lewis :
I have no knowledge of how many people are recognised or how many people are in the union but, as I say, there is a process to be followed and hopefully it will be followed swiftly.
Deputy G.P. Southern : Will he seek that answer? Deputy K.C. Lewis :
Certainly. I speak to - that may be a Freudian slip there - CT Plus on a regular basis, and I am more than happy to ascertain that information as to whether there is anything in particular they are unhappy with.