TRADE UNION RIGHTS AT REED ELSEVIER

That this House notes with concern the discriminatory practice of the merged Anglo-Dutch Reed Elsevier publishing company against its United Kingdom employees; notes specifically that the salaries and conditions of the Dutch employees are agreed through annual negotiations with the appropriate unions, while the salaries and conditions of the United Kingdom employees are unilaterally imposed even when union membership is 70 per cent. or higher; notes that the salaries, terms and conditions of Reed Elsevier United Kingdom staff are inferior to their Dutch colleagues; is concerned that the United Kingdom should not become the cheap labour force of Europe; and therefore condemns this discrimination against the United Kingdom workforce and calls on the Reed Elsevier management to recognise the same rights for the United Kingdom workers as those enjoyed by the Dutch workforce and specifically to recognise the rights of all its workers to be represented individually and collectively by a trade union if they so choose.