The History of Industrial Relations in Uk Local Government ― The Making of the Good Employer

Public sector organisations are large employers delivering labour intensive services that are under constant public and media scrutiny. Reforming public services has been high on the political agenda across Europe and internationally for over three decades. Despite this, the impact of neo-liberal economic policies on public service employment relations remains under-researched. In particular, local government employment relations has had little attention devoted to it by scholars.

The History of Industrial Relations in UK Local Government fills this significant gap. It presents an original empirical study of the changing role of the UK Local Government Employers' Organisation (LGEO) since 1991, conducted within a broader social science framework and embedded in an historical account of the sector since the 1880s. The LGEO, a key actor in the sector negotiating the pay and conditions of nearly 3m public servants, has undergone profound changes over three decades of reform that urgently require documentation and analysis.

This important book makes a number of key contributions. Firstly, it fills a significant gap in the field of employment relations research. Secondly, it extends employment relations research by linking it to a broader social science framework. And thirdly, it develops an interdisciplinary approach drawing on political economy, public administration, politics and employment relations. The book argues that an interdisciplinary approach is essential to understanding the politics of public service reform.

The book will be of interest to scholars and students of employment relations, institutional analysis, labour history, public administration and political economy as well as being a useful resource for HR practitioners, local authority councillors and other public policy-makers.

Whyeda Gill-McLure is Senior Lecturer in Employment Relations at the University of Wolverhampton Business School