Council staff will still be allowed to pay for union subs via their pay packet after the Government announced changes in the forthcoming Trade Union Bill.
Unison welcomed the u-turn, saying the ‘mean-spirited’ proposal would have stopped them using the check-off system to collect membership fees.
Unison general secretary Dave Prentis said: ‘Thanks to a good deal of union campaigning behind the scenes, Unison and the TUC have built an effective coalition in the Lords that persuaded the government a ban would be both unjustified and unnecessary.’
The trade union had previously said the end of automatic fee payments was a ‘malicious’ manoeuvre to starve unions off money.
However, the Government said the move was intended to provide more transparency for employees and bring an end to an ‘outdated’ practice.
