New rights for trade unions to access workplaces: what all employers need to know

The government’s policy intention is to see a greater role for collective voice in the workplace. The new access right is, therefore, intended to give trade unions a practical means of communicating directly with workers, even if the union is not recognised by an employer and has no presence within its workforce. Access can be requested to meet, support, represent, recruit and organise workers, as well as to facilitate collective bargaining. The Code also envisages trade unions using this access to raise awareness of workplace rights, support worker wellbeing and help resolve workplace issues before they escalate.

In practice, this could include trade unions holding introductory meetings with workers, making presentations about trade union membership, running drop-in sessions for employees seeking workplace support, and engaging in discussions with workers about workplace issues and collective bargaining. Importantly, the statutory right of access does not extend to organising industrial action.

The Code makes clear that access should generally take place in the workers’ actual workplace and at their actual location of work, although the precise arrangements will depend on the nature of the workplace and workforce. Importantly, trade unions can request physical access, digital access, or a combination of both, and can apply to access workers even if they are working at a third party’s site (see below).

Physical access

Physical access is intended to allow trade union officials to engage directly with workers in person. The Code envisages access taking place in a variety of workplace settings and reflecting “specific local circumstances”. For example, in hospitals and residential care homes, access may take place in staff rooms, meeting rooms or communal rooms. In offices, access may take place in meeting rooms located near or adjacent to work areas. On construction sites, access may take place when workers are assembled collectively, including during site inductions, toolbox talks and safety briefings. And in the road transport and bus sector, trade unions may meet workers at depots at the start of shifts.

As a general principle, access should usually take place during normal working hours at times that minimise unreasonable disruption to the employer’s business. As referenced above, the Code also confirms that workers who attend meetings organised by the trade union under an access agreement during work time should be paid in full. Employers may therefore wish to consider carefully the proposed frequency of access meetings. This may be an important factor for employers when assessing the operational impact and reasonableness of any proposed access arrangements.

One limit to physical access is that trade unions will not be able to access workers in their own private dwellings. However, they will be able to communicate with workers who work from home either digitally or physically in a base office.

Digital

The new regime is not limited to physical workplace visits. Trade unions may also request access through digital channels, which may be particularly relevant for employers with hybrid, remote or geographically-dispersed workforces. The Code envisages three broad forms of digital access.

Firstly, employers may be asked to circulate communications on the trade union’s behalf through its existing communication channels, such as all-staff emails, intranet articles or employer messaging systems. The Code makes clear that employers should generally make available their usual methods for communicating with workers where these are suitable for the requested access.

Secondly, employers may be required to facilitate direct engagement between trade unions and workers potentially through the setting up of online meetings, presentations and Q&A sessions using existing IT platforms. This may be accompanied by the employer circulating communications to its workforce so that employees are aware of such online events. However, importantly, employers will not be expected to grant trade unions direct access to their IT systems or to make significant structural changes to those systems to facilitate access.

Thirdly, access may involve direct communications between trade unions and workers. However, the Code makes clear that trade unions have no automatic right to obtain a worker’s personal contact details. General data protection principles will still apply. Therefore, direct contact will generally require the worker’s consent to the disclosure of their personal data, or for the worker to provide their contact details to the trade union directly.

Access on third-party premises

The access regime can also apply where a worker is based on premises that are not controlled by their employer. The Code uses examples such as security staff working at client sites and workers based in shopping centres. In these situations, employers will still be expected to take reasonable steps to facilitate trade union access, including by liaising with those responsible for the relevant premises.

Employers should not therefore assume that access to workers can be refused because they are based at a third-party site. Nor should employers assume that a third party’s refusal to allow access will necessarily bring the process to an end. Where access arrangements cannot be agreed, the trade union can refer the matter to the Central Arbitration Committee (CAC), (see below), which has powers to impose access on third-party premises. The CAC can also take enforcement action against third parties, including imposing financial penalties, where they continue to prevent access from taking place in accordance with an access agreement.

In practice, the access process may begin before any formal request is submitted. The Code envisages employers and trade unions engaging constructively and trade unions may seek information about the workforce or workplace arrangements before deciding whether to make a formal access request. The Code makes clear that employers and trade unions remain free to agree access arrangements voluntarily outside the statutory process. However, trade unions are not required to pursue or exhaust voluntary discussions before making a formal access request under the statutory regime.

If a trade union does decide to pursue the statutory process, it must submit a formal access request to the employer. The Code encourages requests to be made by email where possible and provides a standard template which trade unions can use. A single request can cover multiple workplaces operated by the same employer. Multiple trade unions can also make a joint access request to one employer.

The access request must contain certain prescribed information, including details of the workers to whom the requested access relates, the purposes for which access is sought, whether physical or digital access is requested (or both), the locations concerned, the proposed access arrangements, how often access will be required and what notice will be given and any assistance the trade union considers it will require from the employer.

Employers will have 15 working days to respond to any request. Given this relatively short timeframe, employers may wish to consider in advance who within the organisation will be responsible for receiving and coordinating responses to access requests. The Code also encourages employers to provide a contact email address on their website for access requests, helping to ensure requests are directed to the appropriate team and reducing the risk of response deadlines being missed.

If an employer receives an access request, it is important to respond. You cannot assume that you can refuse it or ignore it simply because access would be inconvenient.  If agreement cannot be reached or if you ignore a request, the trade union may refer the matter to the CAC, an independent statutory body responsible for resolving collective employment relations disputes. The CAC can determine whether access should be granted and, if so, on what terms.

Importantly, the statutory framework starts from a presumption in favour of access. The Code explains that trade unions should generally be able to access workers, provided this does not unreasonably interfere with the employer’s business, and that employers should take reasonable steps to facilitate access. The circumstances in which the CAC can refuse access requests are also relatively limited. It must refuse access where:

• the employer has fewer than 21 workers;
• the proposed access agreement does not provide for at least five working days’ notice before the first instance of access takes place;
• the agreement would last for more than two years; or
• access would prejudice national security or the prevention, detection or prosecution of criminal offences.

Beyond this, the Code makes it clear that it is reasonable for the CAC to refuse access in some other circumstances, including where the relevant workers are already covered by a recognised trade union, an existing statutory access agreement is already in place, or where there is an ongoing recognition or access process involving another trade union. The CAC may also take health and safety and security considerations into account. However, the Code is clear that employers are generally expected to address such concerns and facilitate access, rather than rely on them as reasons for refusing access altogether.

Against this backdrop, employers will generally have three options when responding to an access request:

Accept the request without negotiation

An employer may choose to accept the access request as proposed by the trade union. This will save time and costs of a negotiation but will only likely be appropriate if the access terms proposed are reasonable and workable.

Where a request is accepted, the employer must then provide various pieces of information to help facilitate the proposed access arrangements, including information about the relevant workers, workplaces and employer contacts. The employer and trade union must then jointly notify the CAC of the agreed access arrangements.

Negotiate and agree to a varied request

In most cases, the employer is likely to need to negotiate with the trade union to reach agreement that is workable for both parties.  For example, trade unions seeking access may not fully understand an employer’s practical working arrangements so discussions may need to focus on practical issues such as the timing, frequency, location or format of access.

Whilst there are certain access terms that the CAC is more or less likely to accept if a request is referred to them, there are no restrictions on what access terms the parties can agree between themselves. Therefore, employers are likely to find that it will best to negotiate the most reasonable and workable access terms with trade unions directly, rather than rejecting the request outright and risking the trade union referring their request to the CAC, who may impose the requested access terms in any event.  

The parties have 25 working days to negotiate and agree the arrangements following the employer’s initial response. If agreement is reached, again the parties must jointly notify the CAC.

Refuse the request

In some circumstances, there may be good reasons for an employer to refuse a request. For example, the Code acknowledges that employers should not have to accept access arrangements that unreasonably interfere with their business or take unreasonable steps to facilitate access. Equally, as discussed above, employers that already recognise a trade union or have existing access arrangements in place may, in some circumstances, have grounds for resisting an access request.

However, employers should expect any objection of this nature to be closely scrutinised. The Code makes clear that employers are generally expected to explain why the proposed arrangements are unreasonable and consider whether any concerns can be addressed whilst still facilitating access. Employers should also not assume that existing arrangements will necessarily prevent future requests being made. Another trade union may, for example, seek access to parts of the workforce that are not covered by those existing arrangements.

The key point to be aware of is that, where agreement cannot be reached, either party may refer the matter to the CAC, generally within 55 working days of the original access request. Employers should therefore be aware that refusing a request may not be the end of the matter. A referral is likely to involve management time and cost, and the CAC may ultimately impose an access agreement in any event. As explained above, employers are therefore likely to achieve a better outcome by negotiating workable access terms with trade unions directly.

Employers should also bear in mind that the Code identifies several “model” access terms which the CAC is likely to view favourably. These include:

• weekly access for trade unions (or less frequent access if requested by the trade union);
• two working days’ notice of each access visit after the initial visit;
• the employer making available the use of existing workplace facilities where reasonable;
• privacy for communications between trade unions and workers; and
• a requirement for trade union officials to comply with reasonable workplace instructions.

Requests reflecting these model terms are therefore more likely to be approved by the CAC.

Access agreements will not be purely voluntary arrangements. Once in place, access agreements can be enforced through the CAC.

Where a trade union or an employer believes the other party has failed to comply with an access agreement, it can bring a complaint to the CAC. If the CAC finds that a complaint is well-founded, it can require steps to be taken to ensure compliance with the access agreement. If there is then a subsequent breach of the access agreement, or a failure to comply with a CAC order, the CAC may impose financial penalties. These penalties can be significant, reaching up to £75,000 for an initial penalty order, £150,000 for a second penalty order and up to £500,000 for subsequent penalties in cases of continued non-compliance.

Importantly, the enforcement regime is not limited to employers and trade unions. As discussed above, access agreements may sometimes require cooperation from third parties, such as organisations that control premises where workers are based, and the CAC can impose access on third parties. The CAC can also make orders against those third parties and impose financial penalties where they prevent access from taking place in accordance with an access agreement.

This means once an access agreement is in place, it should be treated as an enforceable arrangement. Employers should ensure that managers and teams responsible for implementing or facilitating access – such as HR, IT, security, facilities management and site management teams – understand the requirements of the agreement and take appropriate steps to comply with it. This should include engaging with any third parties whose cooperation may be required to facilitate access, particularly where workers are based at client sites or other third-party premises.

The new right of trade union access represents a significant change to the industrial relations framework. From 30 October 2026, employers may receive requests for physical and digital access to workers, including in workplaces where there is currently little or no trade union presence. The publication of the Code means employers now have much greater clarity on how the new access regime will operate in practice.

That said, employers should not necessarily assume that access requests will become commonplace overnight. It remains to be seen whether trade unions will have the resources and capacity to make large numbers of access requests once the regime comes into force. It may be that some trade unions initially focus on digital forms of access, such as email communications and online meetings, which can potentially be deployed across multiple workplaces and/or hybrid workforces more efficiently than regular physical workplace visits. Ultimately, however, the practical impact of the new regime is likely to vary considerably between employers and sectors.

Employers that may be more likely to attract trade union interest should use the time before October to consider the following steps:

• Industrial relations strategy: if, as an employer, you anticipate that a trade union may wish to take advantage of the new right of access, have you considered how this aligns with your wider industrial relations strategy and any potential future request for voluntary or statutory recognition?

• Proactive engagement: should you consider engaging proactively with a recognised trade union, or a trade union that may seek access in future, to explore whether access arrangements could be agreed voluntarily before the statutory regime is invoked? In some cases, agreeing arrangements in advance may provide greater certainty and flexibility than negotiating access requests once the statutory process has begun.

• Ownership and governance: identify how access requests will be handled in practice and who within the organisation will be responsible for responding to them. Given the statutory timescales involved, requests should not simply be allowed to sit in a shared inbox.

• Operational planning: consider how access could work in practice within your organisation and what arrangements would be necessary to minimise disruption to operations. This may include thinking about suitable meeting locations, access times, confidentiality requirements and any workplace-specific operational constraints. Employers may also wish to consider what terms they would want to see included in any future access agreement.

• Digital access: review the communication channels that could be used for digital access, including email systems, intranet platforms and employee messaging tools. Employers should also consider who would be responsible for managing and coordinating any digital access arrangements.

• Policies and procedures: review any visitor, security and workplace access procedures to ensure they remain fit for purpose. This may be particularly relevant given the expectation that trade union officials will generally comply with reasonable workplace requirements and site rules. Employers should also consider whether existing policies governing the conduct of visitors and third parties remain appropriate in light of the new reforms to harassment laws including where third parties are involved.  

• Training and awareness: consider whether HR teams, managers and site-based personnel would benefit from training on the new regime and how access requests and access arrangements should be handled in practice.

• Risk management and compliance: consider how compliance with any access agreement would be monitored and how concerns or potential breaches would be escalated internally, given the potential for CAC intervention and significant financial penalties.

• Third-party sites: if your workforce is based at customer sites, shared premises or other locations controlled by third parties, consider discussing the new regime with those organisations in advance. As explained above, employers should not assume that a third party can simply refuse access requests. Early discussions may help ensure that all parties understand the new framework and agree a practical approach should an access request be received.

• Employee engagement: even if you do not currently have a recognised trade union and do not anticipate receiving an access request, consider whether your existing employee engagement arrangements remain effective. Do employees feel that their views are heard and that they have appropriate channels through which to raise concerns and influence workplace decisions?

Taking these steps now should place employers in a much stronger position should a request be received after the new regime comes into force.