Picket restrictions not enough for RHA
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;OVERNMENT proposals to restrict picket lines to six have leen welcomed by the Road Haulage Association, but it is still n favour of stronger action.
The RHA was commenting )n the draft code of practice on )icketing which was announced ast week by Employment Secretary James Prior, upon which all interested parties have )een given until October 10 to .:omment.
He suggests that, in order to .educe the risk of violence and 3isorder on the picket line, the lumber at any one workplace thould normally be restricted to ax. According to Mr Prior, this Nill be enough to allow the peaceful persuasion of those 3ntering and leaving the premises who are prepared to listen.
It will be up to the police to Jecide whether the number of Pickets in any individual case is ikely to lead to trouble. If a picket refuses to leave a line Nhen asked by police, he could be arrested for obstruction or a breach of the peace.
An RHA spokesman told CM he considered that the restriction on numbers of pickets to be reasonable, as mass pickets have prevented the rightful access of lorries in the past.
He said the RHA considers it reasonable that, where a dispute arises over who should man a picket line, all pickets should be removed until the union decides on its makeup. "Then, picketing should be monitored closely, and be restricted to persuasion rather than bodily obstruction.'" But he went on to say that the RHA still wants the Government to go farther and outlaw all secondary picketing.
The codes also set out the position of picketing in relation to its organisation, civil and criminal law, the role of the police, and secondary action.
Introducing them, Mr Prior said: "I believe these Codes will make an important contribution to good industrial relations in this country. They will reinforce and underline the increased protection which the Employment Act has provided to individual employees and employers against abuses of picketing.
-If these guidelines are followed by everyone concerned, we should see the end of the abuses of picketing which have caused so much public concern for years. That will not happen overnight, -But everyone stands to gain — trades unions and their members most of all — from the observance of standards of tolerance and flexibility in the conduct of industrial relations.