Employment Rights Act 2025 – Trade Union Access

As a result, union engagement may take place in various forms within the workplace, including physical or online meetings, access to the employer's intranet, and the circulation of union communications through the organisation's digital channels.

The aim of the regime is to enable trade unions to engage directly with workers and to allow unions that are not currently recognised to gain access to the workplace. This will also affect employers that have had little or no previous union presence.

Employers with an existing union presence may notice changes in their relationships with trade unions and may need to review the access arrangements currently in place to ensure that these comply with the new statutory requirements.

The right will not apply to employers with fewer than 21 workers. However, it will apply where an employer operates multiple workplaces and employs a total of 21 workers or more across the organisation.

To exercise this right, a trade union must submit an access request to the employer. The employer will then have up to 15 working days to respond using the enclosed form. See page 37 of the Code of Practice: Right of trade unions to access workplaces

What employers should do to prepare for the introduction of this legislation

Consider what you may be able to offer in terms of access if you are approached eg whether you have rooms in which unions can meet potential members, whether they can have access to any electronic method of communicating with your workers.

If you receive a union access request, you are advised to take the following steps:

• Do not ignore or automatically refuse a request for union access
• This action could significantly increase legal and reputational risk
• You only have three weeks (15 working days) to respond to an access request
• Use the standard form included in the new Code to respond (see link above).

Take advice before responding to the request

Seeking legal advice will help you put a structured process in place to enable you to:

• Be prepared for union access
• Establish if there are grounds for refusing access, in which case you will have a further 25 working days to negotiate access terms with the union. 

Provide reasonable, controlled access

• Defined locations where privacy can be ensured
• Time frames and limited time windows
• Digital access instead of physical access, where appropriate.

Train managers and HR teams

• Make managers/senior staff aware that any requests for access should be sent to directors immediately and ensure support staff receive appropriate training 
• Keep clear records of access requests, and the outcome of these requests 
• Publish an appropriate contact address for receipt of access requests.

Risks and enforcement under the Employment Rights Act 2025

If you do not accept the request and fail to negotiate access terms with the union, the Central Arbitration Committee (CAC) will decide whether they should be given access and on what terms.

Non-compliance with requests for access may lead to:

• Complaints to the CAC 
• Orders from the CAC imposing access arrangements
• Substantial financial penalties for non-compliance
• Risk of more detriment and unfair treatment claims from employees.

Contact [email protected] with any questions.