In recent decades industrial relations in the public sector have come increasingly to the forefront and government policies have brought about significant changes in the attitudes and behaviour of public sector unions. In the 1970s, it was the governments who attempted to limit the public sector wage increases; in the 1980s the Thatcher government reduced public employment levels and sought to curb the power of public sector unions through such measures as privatization, compulsory competitive tendering and the introduction of private sector arrangements and practices. Such actions have changed the face of industrial relations. This book concentrates specifically on industrial relations in the public sector, identifying distinctive features of management organization, collective bargaining, strikes and dispute resolution. It offers not only an outline of the major developments in the public sector in Britain, but a careful analysis of their effects and implications, comparing them in detail to systems in other countries. This breadth makes the book useful for all students of industrial relations and human resource management as well as policy makers and economists. This book should be of interest to lecturers and students of industrial relations, human resource management, economics and politics.