The Trades Union Certification Officer was established in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

Act of Parliament Acts of Parliament, sometimes referred to as primary legislation, are texts of law passed by the legislative body of a jurisdiction (often a parliament or council). In most countries with a parliamentary system of government, acts of parliame ...

in 1975. They head the Certification Office for Trade Unions and Employers' Associations.

Responsibilities

The Certification Officer is responsible for: * maintaining a list of

trade union A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ...

s and employers' associations * receiving and scrutinising annual returns from trade unions and employers' associations * determining complaints concerning trade union elections, certain other ballots and breaches of trade union rules * ensuring observance of statutory requirements governing mergers between trade unions and between employers' associations * overseeing the political funds and the finances of trade unions and employers' associations * certifying the independence of trade unions

Certification Officer

David Cockburn was appointed on 1 August 2001 and re-appointed in 2004, 2007, 2010 and 2012. Mr Cockburn retired on 30 June 2016. He has chaired the Industrial Law Society (ILS), the Employment Lawyers Association (ELA), and the Employment Law Committee of the

Law Society A law society is an association of lawyers with a regulatory role that includes the right to supervise the training, qualifications, and conduct of lawyers. Where there is a distinction between barristers and solicitors, solicitors are regulated ...

. He was also the founder treasurer of

the Institute of Employment Rights ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

. He is currently a vice-president of the ILS and the ELA and a member of the editorial board of the Encyclopaedia of Employment Law and the Industrial Law Journal. He is also a part-time chairman of

Employment Tribunal Employment tribunals are tribunal public bodies in England and Wales and Scotland which have statutory jurisdiction to hear many kinds of disputes between employers and employees. The most common disputes are concerned with unfair dismissal, ...

s and a Visiting Professor at the

Middlesex University Middlesex University London (legally Middlesex University and abbreviated MDX) is a public research university in Hendon, northwest London, England. The name of the university is taken from its location within the historic county boundaries ...

Business School. Gerard Walker was appointed as the Certification Officer by the

Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills The secretary of state for business, energy and industrial strategy, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with responsibility for the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. The incumbent is a memb ...

on 29 June 2016. The appointment was on an interim basis for the period 1 July 2016 to 30 November 2016. The appointment was extended on 24 November 2016 and was extended until December 2017. Walker was responsible for a ruling that foster carers could not form a union, which was then reversed by the Court of Appeal in ''

National Union of Professional Foster Carers v Certification Officer National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, c ...

'' 021EWCA Civ 548 as a violation of fundamental human rights and the Act of Parliament. Sarah Bedwell was appointed as Certification Officer in December 2017.See https://www.gov.uk/government/news/sarah-bedwell-announced-as-the-new-certification-officer

Recognition

In order to be recognised by the Officer, a union must first apply to be listed – a simple paper process, costing £150. To be recognised as an independent union, with all the attendant legal benefits that follow, a union must undergo a more rigorous inspection to confirm its independence from employers. This currently costs £4,066.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Official websiteCatalogue of the Certification Office archives
held at the

Modern Records Centre, University of Warwick The Modern Records Centre (MRC) is the specialist archive service of the University of Warwick in Coventry, England, located adjacent to the Central Campus Library. It was established in October 1973 and holds the world's largest archive collecti ...

Labour relations in the United Kingdom * 1975 establishments in the United Kingdom