The challenges that arise between unions and employers are as much the fabric of UK news bulletins today as they were in the 1970s and 1980s.
The legendary smoky room where negotiations would be brokered and deals struck may be gone, but disputes – and the need to resolve them – are ever present.
There is one critical difference. From the earliest days of my career, every employer understood that the art of union relations was a critical capability, especially in organisations with organised workforces. Those days have gone, and you don't need to work in HR to recognise this shift.
The gap between the negotiation and communication skills that are needed versus those which are present is astonishing. When union discussions arise, the default is often adversarial behaviours. This is not due to ill intent, but to lack of experience or training to do anything else.
When I have spoken to emerging leaders across the public sector, I have been struck by a concerning erosion of confidence and know-how when it comes to working with trade unions. It is not uncommon to be faced with a quizzical look as if to say: ‘Is that really my job? Surely that's a distraction from what I'm here to do?' rather than a nod to the fact that this is a core leadership skill.
This is more than a cultural shift, it is a risk. Nostalgia aside, when organisations lose the capability to work constructively with unions, the consequences are real and lasting: operational disruption, legal costs, reputational damage and a deterioration in employee relations that can take years to rebuild. In the current climate, those are costs we cannot afford.
The gap between the negotiation and communication skills that are needed versus those which are present is astonishing. When union discussions arise, the default is often adversarial behaviours. This is not due to ill intent, but to lack of experience or training to do anything else.
Disputes are a fact of life and work, so starting with an escalatory approach will never be a short cut to resolution.
Another common assumption is that union negotiation is just a financial negotiation. This a view that often leads to missed opportunities, entrenched positions and avoidable escalation. And it couldn't be further from the truth.
Yes, money will be a factor, but union relations are fundamentally about values. When unions negotiate, it is not only about pay or terms, it is about fairness, safety, dignity and respect.
Leaders who enter the room thinking it is just about pounds, pence, and winning at all costs, are missing the point. You cannot deliver successful outcomes without recognising both the commercial and emotional dimensions of these conversations.
The ability to navigate this space is not just about position or experience. Self-awareness is what counts.
Skilled negotiators understand not only the external strategy, but their own internal reactions. They know when they are being provoked, when they are close to escalating unnecessarily, when to regroup and when to walk away. That is a discipline. And too many of our leaders have not been supported to develop it.
The upcoming Employment Rights Bill and local government reorganisation will create an environment where dealing effectively with unions will have a direct bearing on our ability to move new ways of working into new organisations. At present, too many organisations are not ready for this. So, what are the solutions?
At an organisational level, it is not too late to take stock. How resilient and effective are your current consultative arrangements? What is working well and what needs attention? How much trust underpins your relationships with unions and how confident are you that these arrangements will hold up under pressure?
Are they robust enough to support the difficult, values-driven conversations that lie ahead, or are they geared mainly toward routine engagement?
Leaders who have stepped back from this space need to lean in. And those who believe they are already engaged must consider whether they are having the right conversations, not just the familiar ones.
On the macro level, within the sector, we need to acknowledge and address the capability gap. We need senior leaders who have development that goes beyond basic legal training, with the confidence to engage unions early, constructively and strategically – with a genuine understanding of why that is value-enhancing for an organisation.
They need coaching in negotiation and relationship-building. We must support them to develop the emotional discipline that effective union engagement demands.
We need to rethink HR's role. Rather than the de facto go-between or fixer for every issue, HR must be positioned as a coach and enabler, building capacity across the organisation rather than putting it in a silo. This requires confidence and trust on both sides.
HR should always be part of – but not the totality of – any organisation's relationship with a union.
Mindset matters too. Unions are often portrayed as blockers to progress. Engagement can be challenging, but unions also bring insight, perspective, and legitimacy. They are often closest to the realities of the workforce and their perspectives can improve the quality and sustainability of change.
Most urgently, we must also consider the big-picture changes that will influence success. One model to consider is the Welsh Government's approach to social partnership. It offers a striking contrast to the adversarial tone often present in English local government.
By embedding trade unions as strategic partners, not just consultees, it has reframed the relationship in service of fair work and shared outcomes.
It is not about everyone agreeing, but about everyone having a seat at the table and the skills to make that seat count.
If we act now, we can build relationships and capabilities that position local government to lead effective transformation. But if we wait until conflict arises, we will be reacting from a position of weakness.
Once patterns of distrust set in, every necessary change becomes harder, slower and more expensive to deliver.
The councils that thrive through the next phase of public sector change will be those who can work effectively with unions to navigate complexity, rather than simply manage it. The alternative is avoidable dispute, delayed reform and missed opportunity.
The art of working with unions is not lost entirely, but it needs attention. Reclaiming it is not just a professional priority for HR, but a strategic imperative for local government and beyond.
Pam Parkes is president of the PPMA
