The Trade Union Act (2016) stipulates that in order for a strike to be lawful it must now achieve a turnout of ‘at least 50 per cent’ in addition to a majority vote for strike action in the UK. We know remarkably little about the correlates of voting and even less about the decision to vote or abstain in union strike ballots. We address this gap, drawing from a large-scale survey of Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) members administered shortly after their 2019 national pay strike ballot. Results show a disconnect between the focus of the dispute (pay) and the grievances that motivated participation in the ballot (working conditions). We find that those who do not vote in strike ballots are not neutral or undecided, but are, in many cases, opposed to strike action. Our findings also demonstrate the importance of internal union communication to participation in strike ballots.

中文翻译：

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为什么这么多人不投票？参与工会罢工投票的相关性


《工会法》（2016 年）规定，为了使罢工合法，除了英国罢工行动的多数票外，现在还必须达到“至少 50％”的投票率。我们对投票的相关性知之甚少，对工会罢工投票中投票或弃权的决定更是知之甚少。我们根据公共和商业服务联盟 (PCS) 成员在 2019 年全国加薪投票投票后不久进行的大规模调查来解决这一差距。结果显示，争议焦点（薪酬）与促使参与投票的不满情绪（工作条件）之间存在脱节。我们发现，那些不参加罢工投票的人并不是中立或犹豫不决的，而是在很多情况下反对罢工行动。我们的研究结果还证明了工会内部沟通对于参与罢工投票的重要性。