The UK government responds to consultation on trade union access rights

The Employment Rights Act 2025 ('ERA 2025') contains a new right for trade unions to access UK workplaces for the purposes of meeting, representing, recruiting or organising workers, or facilitating collective bargaining.

We have previously written about these measures, which will potentially affect all UK employers with 21 or more workers, in this article. The Government updated its timeline for implementing the provisions of the ERA 2025 on 16 July and has confirmed its intention to bring this part of the legislation into force on 30 October 2026.

Between 8 April and 20 May 2026, the Government consulted on a new draft statutory code of practice on that will be the principal source of practical guidance on the new measures. The draft code included guidance on how access requests should be made, negotiated, and implemented across a range of workplaces, and included best practice examples.

On 6 July 2026, the Government published its response to this consultation. Having considered the feedback it received during the consultation the Government has updated the Code to improve clarity and make the framework easier to navigate. The process for submitting and responding to access requests has been clarified as have the details of where and when access should take place and how financial penalties for non-compliance will operate. There is specific guidance for situations such as those where the employer does not control the premises, where workers have non-typical working patterns and where access is sought through digital means. There are standardised templates for access requests and these have been simplified to reduce the administrative burden on smaller employers. This version of Code has been laid before Parliament with the regulations that set out the procedural and operational detail of the right of access framework.

The Government has also said that it intends to review the statutory access framework within its first six months, with a further consultation on possible changes expected in early spring 2027.

At the same time Acas has presented the Government with a draft updated version of its statutory Code of Practice on time off for trade union duties and activities, reflecting changes required by the ERA 2025. The Code has been laid before Parliament with the intention that it is brought into force alongside the changes to the statutory trade union recognition framework on 30 October 2026. 

Comment 

The Code of Practice on time off for trade union duties and activities is currently of interest only to employers with active union members in their workforces (which may include employers who do not yet recognise unions). But it is clearly the Government's intention to facilitate an increase in union membership though the measures in the ERA 2025, including the improved rights of access by unions and the duty to notify workers of their right to join a union which will be brought into force at the same time. Both Codes of Practice may therefore be of interest to increasing numbers of employers if the Government's objective is met.

If you would like advice on the changes mentioned in this article, or any of the other changes to employment law contained in the ERA 2025, please get in touch with the member of the employment team with whom you usually deal.

This article is authored by Christina Morton, senior knowledge lawyer in the UK employment team.