International and European protection of the right to strike. A comparative study of standards set by the International Labour Organization, the Council of Europe and the European Union

Abstract:

This work presents a detailed and sophisticated account of why the right to strike should be protected, and the nature and form which that protection should take.

The work is organised in four substantive parts following a comprehensive introduction. Part one analyses the categorisation of 'rights' as civil, political, and socio-economic within a 'democratic' framework. It also considers how the justifications for industrial action could be balanced against grounds for its restriction and the kinds of limitation which might be regarded as appropriate. Part two deals with international and regional governance. It explores difficulties associated with making express detailed provision in an international or European legal instrument. Part three considers the role that supervisory bodies are able to play in protection of the right to strike and, in particular, the extent to which they may overcome the obstacles presented by the omission of an express right to strike in an international instrument. Part four examines the jurisprudence on the actual content of the right to strike developed by international and European supervisory bodies.

The book will interest legal historians, international lawyers, labour lawyers, sociologists and political researchers.

Tonia Novitz is a Lecturer in Law at the University of Bristol.