Skating on thin ICE? A critical evaluation of a decade of research on the British Information and Consultation Regulations (2004)

Abstract

This article critically examines the literature dealing with the British Information and Consultation of Employees (ICE) Regulations (2004). It is argued that notwithstanding significant academic interest, the implications of the legislation for employees, trade unions and managers remain under explored and inadequately theorised. Outlining the principal deficiencies it suggests scholars could derive much inspiration from the voluminous output relating to both the (sister) European Works Council (EWC) directive and the continental works council format. The absence of research dealing with the interconnectedness of the ICE and EWC Regulations is similarly highlighted. It is suggested that researchers might usefully import the concept of 'institutional complementarity' to extend knowledge of the synergies potentially derived from the operation of both pan-European (EWC) and national (ICE) fora in those organisations where such bodies co-exist.

Employer silencing in a context of voice regulations: Case studies of non‐compliance

“…These were then evidenced in practice to three matched cases of employer responses. The intent of the Directive was to encourage information disclosure and consultation in a spirit of cooperation to be realised via agreed structures, processes, and content agreed with workforce representatives (Butler et al, 2018; Dobbins et al, 2017; Hall et al, 2013). Instead of assessing how the regulations were used, as existing research has already examined, the evidence in this article considered how the regulatory space for I&C was circumvented by employers in three case studies.…”

“…Thus, regulations can provide structures for dialogue, as in a recognised trade union, or can require employers to provide information in the context of a transfer of undertaking or redundancy consultation. A prominent example of regulatory requirement in this context is the European Information & Consultation Directive transposed across EU member states in the 2000s (Adam, Purcell, & Hall, 2016; Butler, Lavelle, Gunnigle, & O'Sullivan, 2018; Dobbins, Dundon, Cullinane, Hickland, & Donaghey, 2017; Hall, Hutchinson, Purcell, Terry, & Parker, 2013; Hall, Purcell, Terry, Hutchinson, & Parker, 2015). The Directive seeks to promote social dialogue via timely information and consultation through workforce‐agreed structures.…”

Developing Positive Employment Relations

“…Because of failure to win over the government, employers, and unions, the EU directive became 'an idea without a constituency' (Hall and Purcell 2011 , p. 86). While the impact of the regulations has generally been considered to be limited (Butler et al 2015 ), there is some evidence to suggest that they at least encouraged employers to review their information and consultation arrangements (Marchington 2015 ) and also 'nudged' multinationals, in particular, to improve their processes .…”

Inside the meetings: The role of managerial attitudes in approaches to information and consultation for employees

“…While there is extensive research on a range of direct and indirect employee voice mechanisms, there is very little analysis of the processes that influence specifically ‘managerial’ approaches to handling workplace Information and Consultation (I&C) (Butler et al., 2018). This is surprising given the longevity of academic literature on representative participation and employee voice (Dundon et al., 2014; Gomez et al., 2019; Marchington, 2015).…”

“…Drawing on managerial attitudes to I&C in two organizations, we contribute to the literature on representative voice in three ways. First, we address the need for a greater degree of empirical attention concerning managerially focused data (Butler et al., 2018), and for research that explores relationship dynamics and lived experiences to provide a better understanding of how tensions between different groups can be managed (Collings et al., 2021). Thus, we offer new insights about the application of the managerial prerogative and its interplay with trust, specifically in relation to managerial perceptions of the role of employee representatives within I&C fora.…”