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Strikes are leading the Scottish news tonight; Royal Mail, a refinery workers ballot, Aberdeen buses and environmental cleansing operatives - or binmen.

A sign of the times? Not really.

Look at the widespread extent to which workers are having their pay frozen or cut - they're being forced to accept changes to conditions of employment, and pension entitlements are being pared back - and you have to wonder why there isn't much more widespread strike action.

The reason, of course, is recession.

Unions are in a weakened bargaining position where workers fear that a refusal to accept unwelcome change could lead to a realistic threat of worse.

An obvious example is in the car industry, where workers internationally have accepted reduced conditions and enforced holidays with pay cuts.

Strikes are also less likely when the threat of redundancy carries with it the prospect of seeking jobs elsewhere, at a time there are few to be found.

For unions, it's not all surrender though. This is an opportunity to recruit, when workers are more likely to see the value of collective protection.

It's also a time to use what leverage they have in innovative ways.

The argument from the more enlightened union leaders is that free market capitalism has lost its appeal and credibility, and here is an opportunity re-shape it.

Getting more access to the boardroom is one option, or having more influence on the governnment and regulators to cut back on short-termist management.

John Monks, formerly general secretary of the TUC and now at its European equivalent, has argued this is a good time for unions to put pressure on employers to agree to better consultation as they emerge from recession.

That could be partly on pay and conditions, seeking to make pay fairer than recent years in sharing the proceeds of a company's success, but also on welfare benefits and training.

The more enlightened employers are approaching recessionary human resource management with a more innovative approach than seen in previous recessions.

Where they can't afford pay increases this year, in some cases they're offering deferred pay in the form of shares after three or more years.

For staff you want to keep, that also builds in incentives, helps lock in loyalty and gives them a status that only senior managers have enjoyed before.

There's also a positive coming out of the offer of career breaks and part-time working.

For employers, it cuts their costs, while keeping valued workers inside the tent. For some workers, they don't have the luxury of giving up on income temporarily.

But for others, the opportunity to take time out for parenting, some education or a mid-career gap year for travel was the stuff of their dreams during the boom years.

So recession can offer a win-win, and allow for more of the work-life balance that many people crave.

Those looking for more signs of industrial conflict on the horizon should look at the public sector. The strikes being reported today all involve employees who don't have to fear their organisation's collapse.

That's true of all of the public sector.

So where unions have more bargaining power, service managers will have to negotiate their way very carefully through the minefield of industrial action that looms with the government spending squeeze.