Buy in or sell out? - Is partnership in unionised organisations a cynical exercise by employers to neutralise the unions? Or is it a more honest attempt to enhance communication and support change management? We revisit a selection of partnership deals previously featured in IRS Employment Trends to gauge how partnership agreements are working in practice - from the unions' point of view. Our review covers: the reasons for partnership; the new thinking, skills and attitudes required: the costs. both to employers and unions; the effects on union influence; and the overall impact on the climate of employment relations. Based on the testimony of our trade union informants, we conclude that there is little evidence to support the theory that partnership deals are all about getting weakened unions to sign up to a management agenda.