Trade Union Workplace Access: What the New Proposals Mean for Your Business

Trade Union Workplace Access: What the New Proposals Mean for Your Business

The UK government has published its response to the trade union access consultation, and if you are in an organisation that has not yet had significant union presence, now is the time to get ahead of this.

Until now Trade Unions have not had a general right to enter workplaces unless a company voluntarily agrees or is ordered to grant access. Under the Employment Rights Act, Independent Trade Unions will gain a statutory right to access your workplace, physically and digitally, to meet, represent, recruit and organise your workers. Not just members, all workers. The right is expected to come into effect in October 2026.

This blog covers what this actually means in practice, what has changed from the original proposals, and where the areas of risk may lie for employers.

The process: how access requests will work

Unions will likely submit access requests in writing, with email as the default, setting out whether they want physical access, digital access or both, the workers they want to reach, and the support they need from you to make it happen.

From the moment a request lands, the clock starts. Following feedback from employers during consultation, the government has extended the original timeframes significantly:

Revised timeframes

15 working days - For the employer to respond (up from 5)

25 working days - Negotiation period (up from 15)

55 working days - Deadline to refer to the CAC if no agreement is reached (up from 25)

These can be extended further by mutual agreement. 

"The process may look procedural on the surface, but how you negotiate and manage access from day one will likely shape the union relationship you end up with for years to come."

What does "access" actually look like?

The draft Code distinguishes between physical and digital access.

Physical access means union officials coming on site, to meeting rooms, break areas, and wherever workers gather.

Digital access can range from the employer cascading union communications to workers, through to full direct digital access where the union communicates with workers individually using personal contact details, you would also have had to obtain consent for under current UK Data Protection Legislation/ GDPR.

That last point is significant. The burden of securing individual worker consent to share their data sits with the employer.

With regards to frequency, the default model term is appearing to be weekly access, which can be averaged over a month (for example, four consecutive days). Access requires genuine interaction: a visit, a meeting, or a virtual session. Sending an email would not count.

Where the CAC comes in 

If you cannot reach agreement within the negotiation window, either party can refer the matter to the Central Arbitration Committee (GB only). Where a union is applying on so called model terms, which include at least five days notice for a first visit, two days thereafter, weekly access and a two year maximum duration, the case is handled by a single CAC member rather than a full panel. It is designed to move fast and resolve matters quickly.

The CAC can refuse access, but this is usually only in limited circumstances: for example if your workforce is under 21 people, if the access agreement does not meet the minimum notice requirements, or if national security or crime prevention is at stake. It may also refuse where you already recognise a union for those workers, or where granting access would require excessive resource, for example building new facilities or procuring additional IT infrastructure.

Financial penalties

If you breach a statutory access agreement, the CAC can issue financial penalties that scale with repeat non-compliance:

On top of the fines, the CAC can vary an access agreement, require remedial action and, perhaps most damaging for some businesses, publicly name the employer. These are not nominal figures. Compliance needs to be built into your operating model from the outset, not retrospectively addressed after a breach.

The bigger picture

Taken in isolation, the access right is manageable. But it does not exist in isolation. Couple it with the new requirement to proactively tell workers about their right to join a union, the simplified statutory recognition process and the incoming sectoral bargaining framework for adult social care and school support staff, and the trajectory is clear. We are moving towards significantly greater union presence in workplaces that have historically operated without union involvement.

This requires a different kind of readiness. Leaders and managers who have never had to deal with union representatives, recognition requests or collective negotiations will need support. The conversations that happen during those early access visits, formal or informal, can set the tone for everything that follows. We cover this in our recent webinar: Working with Trade Unions which had a TU Rep providing perspective. You can access the recording here: Working with Trade Unions - Webinar Recording

Is your management team ready?

At A Human Resource, we work with businesses to prepare their leaders for the realities of trade union engagement, from understanding rights and obligations under the new framework, to building practical negotiation skills and handling access visits with confidence.

Whether you are facing your first union contact or want to strengthen how your managers will handle collective relations, we can help.

Get in touch to discuss tailored training and support for your team.