Trade union changes for non-unionised employers
If your organisation has never dealt with a trade union, the Employment Rights Act 2025 changes to trade union law are not background noise. Two incoming reforms in particular will affect you directly and the clock is already ticking down. These changes are due to come into effect this October.
A new right of workplace access
From October (if the Government sticks to its current ‘roadmap’), trade unions will have a statutory right to request access to workplaces (both digitally and physically) to communicate with workers about membership and representation. This right will apply regardless of whether a union is recognised. The government has recently consulted on a draft Code of Practice to accompany this change. The Code clearly sets out that, where an access request is made, there is a presumption in favour of access being granted unless it would not be reasonable to do so.
Blanket refusals will carry legal risk, including the possibility of terms being imposed by the Central Arbitration Committee (CAC). For employers with no prior union engagement, this is a genuine shift. Previously, unions had limited grounds to interact with your workforce unless already recognised. HR teams need clear internal processes before the first access request arrives.
Ask yourself, who in your organisation handles a union access request, and what would a ‘reasonable’ response look like?
A new obligation to notify
From October 2026, employers must actively inform employees of their right to join a trade union – likely through a written statement at the start of employment.
The shift from ‘employees have the right’ to join a trade union to ‘employers must tell them they have the right’ is meaningful. It increases the likelihood that employees who had not previously considered union membership will start to do so. We await government guidance on the form that this statement must take. HR teams need to decide where this information sits – contracts, onboarding materials, or standalone documentation.
These two changes do not operate in isolation. Together, they are part of a deliberate policy direction: reducing barriers to union organisation and increasing union visibility. The realistic consequence, over time, is more union membership and more recognition requests, including in sectors that have historically been lightly unionised.
What to do now
- Audit onboarding documentation and consider where you will build in the right-to-join notification ahead of October 2026
- Establish an internal process for handling union access requests before you receive one
- Brief managers on what they should say when employees raise questions about union membership
- Review your employee relations – unions gain traction when employees feel unheard
Here to Help
Our Employment team at Longmores helps employers understand and prepare for changes to trade union law, including workplace access requests and the duty to inform workers of their right to join a trade union.
If you need advice on preparing documents or preparing for the practical impact of these changes, please contact Richard Gvero, Senior Partner and Head of Commercial and Employment.
Please note, the contents of this article are provided for information only and must not be relied upon. Legal advice should always be sought in relation to specific circumstances.
