Get ready for big changes in trade union law

At present, unions have no general right of access to a workplace. However, from October 2026 trade unions will gain a new statutory right to access workplaces, physically and digitally, to meet, support, represent, recruit and organise workers, and to facilitate collective bargaining, though not to organise industrial action.

This will apply to employers with 21 or more workers (including employees, workers and agency workers) as a whole, and not per site. Unions will not need to be recognised or have to show a minimum level of support from workers before making an access request.

The process for seeking access will move quickly from when the union sends an access request, likely by email. The employer then has up to 15 working days from when the application is given to respond. If the request is not accepted in full, the parties have 25 working days to negotiate in good faith. If agreement is still not reached, either party may refer the matter to the Central Arbitration Committee (CAC), which can decide whether access should be granted and on what terms.

Even if an employer already recognises a trade union, other unions can request access to the workforce, although the CAC may refuse access where recognition or an access agreement is already in place.

From an employer’s perspective, the starting-point should not be how to refuse. The right is built around a presumption in favour of access where it does not unreasonably interfere with the employer’s business. There will be circumstances where refusal may be justified, including very small employers, national security concerns, criminal investigations, limited health and safety risks, overlapping union requests, or situations where access would require significant structural changes to premises or IT systems. But blanket objections are not going to be a sensible strategy.

Digital access may be one of the most impactful reforms. Unions may seek online meetings, intranet posts, messaging-system access or employer-circulated emails. Employers will be expected to be operationally involved in delivering this, although they should not be recording or monitoring worker engagement or participation. Employers will need to consider data protection carefully against this.

Once in place, access agreements will be enforced through the CAC who can impose financial penalties for non-compliance, with higher penalties for repeated breaches, making it extremely important that any agreement is workable in practice, not merely acceptable on paper. Penalties are £75,000 for a first breach, £150,000 for a repeated breach and £500,000 maximum for a third or subsequent penalty order issued under the same access agreement.

Employers therefore need to plan how they will manage these new obligations, whether implementing a new strategy for managing workplace relations or reviewing their existing engagement with unions, where that exists. They also must now prepare for who will manage these requests, how they will do this and provide training and awareness of what is required.

Gillian Donald is a partner with Blackadders LLP​