The historical importance of multi-employer, national pay bargaining to the UK general printing sector

This paper aims to show how the historical development of multi-employer national pay bargaining has shaped contemporary patterns of pay regulation in general print. The resilience of national pay bargaining is set against the backcloth of a diminishing reliance on this method of industrial relations in the private sector of the UK economy. Through placing national pay bargaining within an historical context, the paper shows how trends have developed over time. In particular it provides insight into shifting bargaining priorities and tactics adopted by employers and trade unions over a range of issues including flexibility, productivity and efficiency, and training.