Celebrating our recognition success stories

Signing a recognition agreement with an employer is one of the key processes through which Prospect can make the biggest difference for our members. Each new deal is a big win for our union and for the members affected.

Prospect signs recognition deal with Green Alliance

National Conference is always a time for thinking ahead, as delegates vote on the issues and priorities for the union through the next couple of years.

But it can also be a time for taking stock and looking back at what we’ve achieved.

Although it is ‘just what we do,’ signing a union recognition agreement, whether it’s a completely new one, or an extension of an existing one, is always a good news story to be celebrated.

Why is recognition so important?

Here are the words of Sam Gipson, Prospect Senior Organiser:

“While we can do a lot for all our members, we can have a particularly large impact in employers where we are officially recognised.”

Read more in Sam’s blog:

What is recognition, why does it matter and how do we achieve it? 

Since our last National Conference in 2022, Prospect has negotiated and signed dozens and dozens of recognition deals.

For example, earlier this summer, Prospect signed a recognition agreement with Green Alliance, an independent think-tank with charitable status who helps “NGOs, businesses and government accelerate political action and create transformative environmental policy.”

Aditya Narayanan, Prospect organising officer, said:

Shaking hands on the Green Alliance recognition deal

“This recognition agreement will enable members to collectively bargain on pay and terms and conditions as well as influence the pay structure to provide a fair offering for all employees. Prospect has already had success in negotiating an end to Fixed Term Contracts and we are hoping to build on a positive working relationship with management.

“The next plans for the branch are to build more connections with other Prospect branches that have an environmental focus and otherwise continue to advocate for members within the workplace.”

At Ørsted, one of the world’s major offshore wind companies, the recognition deal has been such a massive success that the branch has seen a huge recruitment boost, growing from a handful of members to nearly 150, and the employer has already extended the agreement to cover new areas.

Another branch where we’ve signed a new recognition agreement is at Coventry and Solihull Waste Disposal, a facility that converts waste into energy.

During the last Heart Unions Week, an enterprising group of existing members – one shift team, basically – managed to recruit more than a dozen colleagues at the small plant.

This meant nearly the entire workforce in the operations teams were now Prospect members. They subsequently contacted Prospect seeking help with union recognition for the purposes of collective bargaining assistance.

Though the employer initially resisted, and it went through the CAC process, they knew the numbers were overwhelmingly in the members’ favour and a deal was agreed.

Tom Sidwell, Prospect negotiations officer, said:

“I think it took a bit longer than everyone anticipated given the employers’ resistance: ‘We don’t need a union here, we’re good payers, got good terms and conditions,’ and all the usual excuses. ACAS mediated the conversations, and they company came to the inevitable conclusion that this was going to happen.

“It’s a real success story out of nowhere because of the recruitment initiative shown by those initial members. Now we’ve got a small but perfectly formed branch with two workplace reps and we just signed off on a pay deal hugely accepted by the membership.”

He added that relations with the employer, despite their initial resistance, were now really positive and they were working with him on issues, such as on family friendly policies and on networking across the Energy from Waste sector.

“They’ve seen that having us around is a benefit, not a hindrance,” he says.

And, of course, it’s the members who will benefit most of all.

Two years of recognition successes

In the last couple of years since our last National Conference, Prospect has signed new recognition agreements, or renewed/extended existing deals across all our sectors.

Here is a selection of some of those:

• Affinity Flying Training Services – Engineers
• Airtanker – Engineers
• American Museum & Gardens
• Antur Teifi
• Artists Collective Gallery Ltd
• Ascent
• BA City Flyer – Engineers
• Babcock Aviation
• Babcock Corporate Services
• BAE Systems Global Combat Systems
• Cavendish Nuclear
• Code Clan
• Collective Gallery Edinburgh
• Coventry and Solihull Waste Disposal
• Dock 10
• Draken – Engineers
• EDF Renewables
• Gloucestershire Airport
• Green Alliance
• Isle Of Man Government
• IWM (trading fund staff)
• Liverpool John Lennon Airport PLC
• Loganair – Engineers
• London Ashford Airport (Lydd)
• London Ashford Airport (Lydd) – Fire & Rescue
• Low Level Waste Repository
• Lydd Airport Air Traffic Control
• Magnox Nuclear (North & South Sites)
• Marine Biological Association
• Menter Mon
• National Football Museum
• National Holocaust Museum
• National Mining Museum Scotland
• Nautilus Int
• Nuclear Decommissioning Authority
• Nuvia Limited
• Office for Nuclear Regulation
• Ørsted
• Radioactivetive Waste Management
• RBSL Rheinmetall
• Rolls-Royce SMR
• RWE Renewables
• Sellafield Ltd
• SGS Baseefa Ltd
• Sloane Helicopters – Engineers
• SSE Renewables
• St Christopher’s Fellowship
• Wellcome Trust