Public Sector Staff Granted Paid Leave for Trade Union Activities: A Significant Taxpayer Investment
New figures have revealed a substantial allocation of taxpayer funds towards public sector employees engaging in trade union activities. Last year, an estimated 15,000 public sector staff received paid leave to dedicate time to union work, including organizing and strategizing for industrial action. This practice, known as ‘facility time’, saw a significant financial outlay, with an estimated £90 million spent by councils, schools, government departments, and the National Health Service (NHS) to cover the wages of these employees while they were engaged in union duties.
Of the over 20,000 union representatives embedded within public bodies, a notable 74 per cent, equating to 14,976 individuals, benefited from paid leave for their union responsibilities. The data further indicates that a significant portion of these individuals dedicated a substantial amount of their working hours to union matters. Specifically, 2,258 employees spent more than half of their work time on union business, diverting their efforts away from public service delivery. Alarmingly, nearly 1,000 of these representatives devoted their entire working hours to union causes, which included activities such as distributing leaflets and planning strike actions. This raises concerns that taxpayer money is indirectly funding the disruption of public services through strike plots.
Facility Time: A System Under Scrutiny
The arrangement allowing public sector workers to be paid their wages while undertaking trade union activities is formally recognised as ‘facility time’. Critics argue that this system has allowed trade unions to exert considerable influence over public bodies. Some organisations are reportedly dedicating as much as 15 per cent of their wage bill to provide staff with paid leave for union work.
Concerns have been amplified by recent legislative changes. The watering down of rules intended to regulate ‘facility time’ within the Employment Rights Bill, which received Royal Assent in December, is expected to lead to a further escalation of these figures.
NHS and Local Government: Significant Expenditures
The NHS, in particular, has seen a considerable expenditure on facility time. Last year, nearly £19 million was allocated by the NHS for staff undertaking trade union roles, representing a 10 per cent increase compared to figures from three years prior. Across more than 150 health trusts, 2,978 staff were granted paid leave for union activities. Of these, 305 spent over half their working hours on union matters, and 172 dedicated their entire working time to union responsibilities rather than patient care.
Local authorities represent the largest sector in terms of expenditure on facility time, with councils spending £29.4 million last year. This expenditure is particularly contentious given that many homeowners have experienced council tax hikes of at least 5 per cent. In total, over 3,000 council workers received paid leave for union activities. A substantial number, 631, dedicated more than half their working hours to union work, with nearly 500 spending their entire working time on such duties.
Whitehall and Other Departments: A Growing Trend
Central government departments, often referred to as Whitehall, also incurred significant costs, spending £13.8 million on facility time last year, an increase from £10.9 million three years earlier. More than 3,600 civil servants benefited from paid leave for union activities, with 1,065 spending over half their time on union business.
The Ministry of Justice recorded the highest facility time bill among public bodies, amounting to £3.2 million. This was followed by HM Revenue and Customs, with an expenditure of £2.3 million, and the NHS Lothian health trust at £2.2 million. In terms of the sheer number of union representatives embedded within organisations, the Department for Work and Pensions led with 1,014 representatives, followed by HM Revenue and Customs (776) and the Ministry of Justice (647).
Criticisms and Concerns
Former Health Secretary Steve Barclay has voiced strong criticism, suggesting that trade unions are diverting essential resources away from patients to fund their political campaigns. He argues that NHS funds should be prioritised for improving patient care, and that such mismanagement contributes to rising taxes.
Former Conservative leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith has expressed a view that the current government is heavily indebted to trade unions, labelling them as ‘paymasters’. He contends that this influence leads to deteriorating public services and that the extension of these arrangements to the private sector could negatively impact productivity, which he describes as “shockingly low” in the UK public sector.
John O’Connell, chief executive of the TaxPayers’ Alliance, has expressed dismay at the extent to which trade unions appear to have infiltrated public sector bodies. He finds it particularly concerning that NHS trusts, often citing a lack of resources, are among the prominent spenders on facility time. O’Connell advocates for a reduction in facility time, suggesting a ban on staff spending more than 50 per cent of their hours on union work.
The Impact of Strikes and Legislative Changes
The cost of industrial action is also a significant concern. Health Secretary Wes Streeting has acknowledged that recent strikes by resident doctors, organised by the British Medical Association (BMA), have already cost the NHS at least £250 million. Forecasts suggest this figure could exceed £1 billion in the coming years if strike frequency remains constant. These strikes have led to the rescheduling and cancellation of hundreds of thousands of operations, exacerbating waiting lists.
Resident doctors, also known as junior doctors, have voted for further strike action, demanding a 29 per cent pay rise, despite having accepted a 22.3 per cent increase previously. Elsewhere, bin collection strikes by the Unite union have impacted residents in Birmingham, and HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) strikes orchestrated by the PCS union have caused significant delays in tax refunds and disrupted other customer services.
The implementation of Labour’s Employment Rights Bill has also drawn criticism. The requirement for public bodies to record the financial cost of facility time to taxpayers has been removed, meaning that recent figures may represent the last comprehensive overview of these expenditures. The new legislation is also seen as empowering union representatives to determine the use of ‘facility time’, potentially granting them more time away from their primary job duties. Government guidance outlines the right to time off for “promoting the value of equality in the workplace.” Furthermore, the repeal of the minimum 50% turnout requirement for strike ballots, introduced under the previous Conservative government, is viewed by critics as making future industrial action easier to initiate.
Union Perspectives and Government Response
Dr. Tom Dolphin, chair of the BMA council, defends facility time as an essential component of a functional workplace. He argues that it empowers union representatives, who are themselves hardworking NHS staff, to support their colleagues by resolving workplace disputes, identifying management errors, and safeguarding patient safety.
A Government Spokesperson stated that significant investments are being made into the NHS to reduce waiting lists and improve patient care, with an increase in the number of doctors and nurses on the front line. The spokesperson also noted that the costs associated with facility time, as a proportion of pay, are consistent with previous years.
Birmingham City Council: A Case Study in Facility Time Costs
In a notable instance, Birmingham City Council, which has experienced year-long bin strikes, allocated over £1 million in paid leave for staff to engage in trade union activities last year (2024/25). This expenditure on ‘facility time’ allows staff who are trade union officials to be paid for carrying out their union duties. It is understood that some of these activities were related to officials affiliated with the Unite union, which has been central to the ongoing strikes.
This situation has led to concerns that residents, who have faced a 20 per cent increase in council tax following the council’s declaration of bankruptcy, have indirectly funded the planning of strikes that commenced in January of the previous year. A total of 31 Birmingham City Council staff reportedly spent their entire working hours on union business last year. Facility time has cost the local authority £3.5 million over the past three years.
Across the UK, local authorities collectively spent £29 million last year on paid leave for workers undertaking union business, with many planning council tax hikes of at least 5 per cent. More than 3,200 council staff across the country spent some of their working hours on union duties.
The ongoing bin strike dispute in Birmingham centres on the role of the waste recycling and collection officer, established after refuse worker strikes in 2017. The council aims to eliminate this role to align with national standards and a legal ruling on equal pay. Unite, however, contends that the role is not redundant and that its removal would result in a £8,000 annual pay cut for 150 workers, a figure the council disputes, stating only 17 individuals would face a reduction exceeding £6,000.
A spokesperson for Birmingham City Council commented that the facility time expenditure reflects the council’s status as the largest local authority in the country.
