The new trade union access right and what it means for you
The government has confirmed its intention to bring the new trade union access rights into effect on 30 October 2026 and we now have finalised details on how the new rights will initially operate. This article provides a quick primer on the new access right, what it may mean for your business and what you can (or should) be doing to prepare.
What is the new access right?
Under the new access right, any trade union with a certificate of independence will be able to request access to any workplace (subject to limited exceptions, see below) for the purpose of meeting, representing, recruiting or organising workers or facilitating collective bargaining. Unions cannot use these access rights to organise industrial action.
Access can be physical, with trade unions attending workplaces to meet with workers in person, and/or digital. Digital access could, for example, involve an agreement by the employer to disseminate trade union communications by email, or the employer hosting a virtual meeting on the employer’s communication platform.
Can unions request access to any workplace?
The access right will apply to most workplaces, and will apply regardless of whether the employer recognises the trade union, or whether the union has members among the workforce. It may therefore affect employers outside traditionally unionised environments.
Employers with fewer than 21 workers will be exempt from statutory access procedures, so access for very small employers would be voluntary. However, associated employers will be taken into account for these purposes, so only very small businesses will be exempt. There are also no access rights in relation to private dwellings, and other narrow exemptions (for example where access would pose national security concerns) apply.
When will this be coming into effect?
The new access rights are expected to take effect on 30 October 2026.
What happens when a trade union makes an access request?
A union may approach an employer informally to discuss access arrangements. These discussions, and any resulting access agreement, will sit outside the statutory framework.
If the trade union makes a statutory access request, the statutory process will be engaged and any resulting access agreement will be a “statutory access agreement”. An access request must be in writing and must include certain prescribed minimum information, including a statement that it is made under the relevant legislation (section 70ZB of TULRCA 1992), so it will be recognisable to employers. The Code of Practice appends a standardised form – while unions are not required to use this, it is likely that most requests will be in this form.
Employers will have 15 working days to respond to an access request. Responses must provide prescribed information, and there is a standardised template appended to the Code of Practice to support employer with this. Engagement within this timeframe will trigger a 25 working day negotiation period which can be extended by agreement with the trade union.
Any access agreement reached through the statutory process will need to be notified to the CAC.
If the parties fail to reach agreement during a negotiation period, or if the employer does not respond within the 15 working day response period, the trade union can apply to the CAC.
The CAC will be guided by a presumption towards access, but may refuse access where the statutory refusal grounds or other relevant factors apply. It may refuse access, for example, where there is a statutory access agreement in place with another trade union or there is a live request or recognition process.
What might an access agreement look like?
The government has indicated ‘model’ access terms which would ordinarily be held to be reasonable by the CAC, though of course it is open to the parties to agree other arrangements. Model terms provide for up to weekly access, though email communications would not count toward this. Unions would, as standard, be required to give at least two working days’ notice for access (more for a first visit).
The Code also indicates that facilities offered to the union should be based around the employer’s own practice, that access arrangements should not be arranged so as to materially disrupt the employer’s operations, and that the privacy of a union’s meeting with workers should be ensured.
What happens if you fail to comply?
Failure to comply with an access agreement reached on a purely voluntary basis, outside the statutory process, does not carry a sanction – though, practically, if voluntary agreements are not honoured, that may trigger a statutory request.
Failure to comply with a statutory access agreement can ultimately lead to the CAC imposing financial penalties, but only after the CAC has first upheld a complaint or made an order requiring compliance. If there is a further breach within 12 months, or a breach of a CAC order, the CAC may impose a penalty of up to £75,000 for a first penalty order, up to £150,000 for a second penalty order under the same access agreement, and up to £500,000 for third and subsequent penalty orders. In multi-site agreements, breaches may be treated cumulatively, so penalties can escalate quickly. Maximum fines are deliberately set high to act as a deterrent, though the CAC will in practice determine the fine taking the full circumstances into account.
What are your key takeaways?
There are two key takeaways for employers who currently operate outside unionised environments:
- Access requests will be difficult to resist in most circumstances. For the most part, where you are approached by a trade union, the best way forward is therefore to look to negotiate mutually acceptable access arrangements on a voluntary basis (before the statutory process is initiated), rather than agreeing access arrangements through the statutory process or having a statutory access agreement imposed by the CAC.
- Strict timelines apply in relation to statutory access requests (as for recognition processes), and failure to meet these timelines may result in an application to the CAC and the imposition of a statutory access agreement. If you receive a written access request or are otherwise approached by a trade union, you should take advice on your next steps immediately.
What should you be doing now?
The practical impact of the changes remains to be seen. Trade unions do not have unlimited resources to devote to holding recruitment or engagement meetings in workplaces, so we are unlikely to see a wave of requests outside traditionally unionised sectors on day 1. That being said, it is relatively easy for trade unions to scale up digital communications across multiple workplaces within a sector, so we may well see digital access requests in spaces where we have not had union engagement previously.
There are a few steps you can sensibly do to prepare if you think an access request is likely, either because you recognise a union, or because you are in a heavily unionised sector or have had interest in the past. If you have a relationship with a union, you may wish to engage proactively to agree access arrangements outside the statutory framework. Alternatively, it would be sensible at a minimum to review the Code of Practice and give thought to what a sensible access arrangement might look like, and what the key concerns for the business would be around access. In that way, you will be ready to respond constructively to a union approach. You may also want to look more broadly at your workforce engagement: where unions have regular access, it will be more important than ever to maintain good lines of communication.
Otherwise, as outlined above, the key takeaway for all businesses is that, if you are approached by a trade union, it is very important to engage constructively and to take advice immediately. In that way, you may be able to agree arrangements before a statutory request is triggered. This is nothing new, but it is worth re-emphasising the point to managers and ensuring that internal escalation routes are clearly communicated.
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