Niall McSorley of Tughans solicitors looks at strikes and other industrial action in some detail.

Introduction
The current economic climate, in which redundancies, pay cuts, and withdrawal of benefits are common, has created an appetite for industrial action. In Northern Ireland, this was evident in the sit in and picketing by workers of Visteon in April 2009 following the closure of plants. Strike action by cabin crew of British Airways as a result of proposed cost cutting exercises has just ended. However, the dispute is ongoing. Certainly, trade unions such as Unite have shown a greater willingness to resort to industrial action in negotiations, in order to broker a deal.

What is industrial action?
Industrial action involves the refusal of