Trade Union Access Rights: Is Your Business Prepared?
Date: August 10th 2026
The Employment Rights Act (ERA) 2025 introduces a number of key changes for employers, including reforms to unfair dismissal, Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) and workplace harassment.
One important change has received much less attention and that is the introduction of the statutory right for trade unions to access the workplace.
The new right matters, especially to those employers who have had little or no engagement with unions to date. It is vitally important for employers to understand what they need to do should a union make such a request.
The second limb is, that if an access request is granted, there is likelihood that more and more employers will receive statutory requests for union recognition in the immediate future (note this statutory request was simplified in April 2026).
Current Rights:
At present, trade unions do not have the right to access the workplace.
Where there is no recognised agreement in place, trade unions can only exercise their functions through individual members in the workplace, or through access arrangements reached on a voluntary basis.
New Rights under the ERA 2025:
From 30 October 2026, a trade union has a statutory right to make a request for access to the workplace, both physically (i.e. visiting the workplace) and digitally (i.e. through the employer’s internal communication channels).
The right does not apply to employers with fewer than 21 workers. The threshold applies across the organisation as a whole, not individual sites.
For example, Site A has 25 employees, and Site B has 13 employees, because the business employs 38 employees in total, both sites fall within the scope of the statutory right.
How will the Process Work?
Step 1: The Union Makes a Request
The statutory right encourages trade Unions and employers to continue using and reaching voluntary access arrangements, where possible.
If a voluntary agreement cannot be reached, the union may submit a formal access request to the employer, in accordance with their statutory right.
The request should contain as much information about the access request as possible, in order that the employer can properly consider the request being made.
Step 2: Employers Response
The employer has up to 15 workings days to respond.
If the employer agrees, this should be communicated to the union and both parties should notify the Central Arbitration Committee (“CAC”).
If the employer does not agree, the employer should use the response template as set out in the statutory Code. The employer should include as much information as possible including, which parts of the agreement are rejected and the reason why, so that meaningful negotiations can take place.
Step 3: Negotiating
If no agreement is reached, the Union and employer has up to 25 working days to negotiate the terms of an access agreement.
During this period, both parties should engage in meaningful negotiations to try and agree appropriate access arrangements.
Practical Tip: Do not agree to arrangements that you cannot realistically deliver in practice.
Step 4: Referral to CAC
If negotiations fail, either party can refer the matter to the CAC within 15 working days (55 working days total).
The CAC will the request, consider both sides’ positions and decide what the access agreement should contain.
Step 5: Enforcement of the Agreement
If disputes arise after the agreement has been reached, the parties should seek to resolve matters between themselves in the first instance.
If the parties are unable to resolve the dispute between them, either party can make a complaint to CAC within 3 months of the issue arising.
A complaint can be made where is alleged that either:
• One part has breached the terms of the agreement; or
• A third party has prevented access being provided in accordance with the agreement.
The CAC will then investigate and may:
• Alter the agreement; or
• Declare the complaint is or is not well-founded.
If the CAC find that the complaint is well-founded, they can make an order requiring specific steps be taken to ensure the access agreement is complied with.
Penalties:
It is important to note that the CAC can enforce significant penalties, including where there has been a deliberate attempt to obstruct access, wilful disregard of the access agreement and where further breaches occur.
The CAC can impose penalties on a sliding scale, the maximum penalties are:
• First breach: up to £75,000.
• Second breach under the same agreement: up to £150,000
• Any subsequent breaches under the same agreement: up to £500,000.
For this reason, employer should carefully consider the access agreement before agreeing to it, and where an agreement has been agreed, ensure that staff who will be dealing with the union are aware.
Amend or revoke an access agreement:
Access agreements can be amended or revoked.
If either party wants to amend or revoke an access agreement, both parties must agree, and notify CAC.
Exceptions to the right:
A union cannot obtain access where:
• The employer has fewer than 21 workers.
• Access would create a genuine risk to national security or interfere with a criminal investigation.
• The union fails to give at least 5 working days’ notice before its first visit.
Reasonable grounds to refuse a request:
Where the exceptions do not apply, the CAC may still refuse access in certain circumstances where:
• The employer already recognises an independent trade union that covers the workers concerned.
• There is an ongoing statutory recognition process.
• A statutory access agreement is already in operation.
• Access could jeopardise the health and safety of any person covered by the agreement.
What should employers do now?
The new rights do not take effect until 30 October 2026; employers should start to prepare for this change by:
1. Reviewing the current approach to trade unions.
2. Consider how union access requests will be managed.
3. Identify any health and safety or operational concerns.
4. Ensure managers know how to respond if a request is received.
5. Take legal advice before agreeing to any access arrangement.
The new regime provides stronger rights to trade unions than ever before. It is important that employers are prepared for this new change.
