A white paper outlining this proposal is due early in 1998. The 1990 Employment Act made unions responsible for members' industrial actions, including unofficial strikes, unless union officials repudiate the action in writing. Unofficial strikers can be legally dismissed, and voluntary work stoppage is considered a breach of contract. During the 1980s, Parliament eliminated immunity from prosecution in secondary strikes and in actions with suspected political motivations. Actions against subsidiaries of companies engaged in bargaining disputes are banned if the subsidiary is not the employer of record.
Unions encouraging such actions are subject to fines and seizure of their assets.
Many unions claim that workers are not protected from employer secondary action such as work transfers within the corporate structure. Local education authorities can limit employment of children under 16 years old if working will interfere with a child's education. A Tri-partite Commission is expected to make a specific recommendation in 1998 regarding the level. Daily and weekly working hours are not now limited by law, although the EU directive outlawing mandatory work weeks longer than 48 hours will be implemented soon. Hazardous working conditions are banned by the Health and Safety at Work Act of 1974.