Trade Union Legislation

Overview

Our Island Plan sets out a vision of a secure, vibrant and sustainable Island, with a commitment for the Department for Enterprise to deliver reforms to employment legislation, ensuring the Island is aligned with international standards and remains a competitive and attractive place to work.

Though in 2017 the Equality Act made a number of significant changes to employment law in the Island in relation to discrimination, over a number of years the Isle of Man has been falling behind international standards in relation to employment rights. The Department intends to make a number of changes to employment law in the current administration.

In 2022, the Department consulted on a number of topics that came to make up the Employment (Amendment) Bill 2023 that completed its progress through the Legislative Branches earlier this year. Those measures, which focused mainly on family leave rights and whistleblowing, will be implemented in the spring of 2025.

Why your views matter

The Department now seeks to make further improvements to employment legislation on the Isle of Man. This consultation seeks views on the following areas of Trade Union legislation:

• Notice of industrial action
• Mandate for industrial action
• Ballot thresholds
• Industrial action in essential services
• Recognition of trade unions in the workplace

This consultation is issued in tandem with a series of other consultations that can be found on the Consultation Hub in relation to employment rights.

Throughout this consultation, the UK’s legislation may be referenced. It should be noted that now the UK is under a Labour Government, that this may change in the future.

Following this consultation, the Department will review the responses and use this information to inform the development of the Employment (Amendment) Bill that will be brought forward in 2025.

A summary of responses will be published on this page within 12 weeks of the consultation closing.

If you would like to find out more about the Island’s current statutory employment rights, please visit the Guides to Employment Rights page on gov.im (opens on a new tab).

More information on the Employment (Amendment) Bill 2023 (opens in a new tab).

Reasonable adjustments and alternative formats

The Department is committed to equal opportunities and our aim is to make our documents easy to use and accessible to all.

We will take steps to accommodate any reasonable adjustments and provide such assistance as you may reasonably require to enable you to access or reply to this consultation.

If you would like to receive this document in another format or need assistance with accessing or replying to this consultation, please email jasmine.cowin@gov.im or telephone +44 1624 686559.

Responding to this consultation

You can respond to this consultation online by clicking on the 'Online Survey' link below. Alternatively, you can download a paper copy on the 'Related' section below.