New & extended rights about trade unions

From 30 October 2026, employers will need to comply with the following:

New right: Protection against detriment for attending a strike

From 30 October 2026, workers (which includes employees) formally have the right not to be subjected to a detriment by any act (or any deliberate failure to act) by their employer, if it's done solely or mainly to prevent or deter them from taking lawful strike action, or penalising them for doing so.

This covers all types of detriment but not deductions from pay during the strike or other industrial action. This means that any perceived negative treatment of a worker (or employee) who is proposing to take part in, or has taken part in, a strike or other industrial action may result in a detriment claim. For example, if a worker is entitled to any discretionary benefits and you withdraw them, it could be a detriment. To avoid liability, you'll need to show that your reason for withdrawing the benefit was unrelated to the worker proposing to take part in, or taking part in, a strike or other industrial action.

If an Employment Tribunal finds that an employer has taken detrimental action against a worker, it must make a declaration of that fact and can award compensation. The amount of any compensation will consider the infringement and any financial loss suffered by the worker, such as any expenses they reasonably incurred because of the detriment and the loss of any benefit they could reasonably have had.

New right: Duty to take reasonable steps to allow a trade union to access the workplace

From 30 October 2026, a trade union must be allowed physical and digital access to the workplace. This can be to:

• Communicate to the employer's workforce (directly or indirectly)
• Meet, support, represent, recruit or organise workers (regardless of whether they are members of a trade union)
• Enable collective bargaining, but not to organise industrial action.

The government is encouraging employers and trade unions to reach a voluntary access agreement. If they don't, or if the trade union doesn't want to seek a voluntary arrangement, a statutory process will be triggered. This is set out in a code of practice, which covers the statutory rules and provides practical guidance about them. Though not legally binding, any failure to observe the code of practice is admissible as evidence and can be considered in any legal claims made to a court, tribunal or the Central Arbitration Committee.

The code of practice sets out how a trade union can make an access request and how it must be given to an employer. Once the application is received, an employer will have up to 15 working days to respond to it.

They can refuse access, or seek to limit the proposed access, on certain (limited) grounds, such as due to health and safety concerns and/or operational disruption and/or security.

Otherwise, they will have 25 working days to negotiate the terms of an access agreement.

If an employer denies the trade union's request for access, fails to respond to it, or negotiations are unsuccessful, the trade union can appeal to the Central Arbitration Committee.

Amended right: Providing accommodation and other facilities to trade union officials and learning representatives

Prior to this change, trade union members and trade union learning representatives who are recognised by an employer had a right to receive paid time off to carry out their duties, and to be provided with access to facilities to do so. Acas have a Code of Practice on time off for trade union duties and activities that sets out the minimum an employer should do when dealing with these requests.

From 30 October 2026, this is strengthened to require an employer, at the request of the trade union member/learning representative, to provide them with reasonable accommodation and other facilities in accordance with the (updated) Acas Code of Practice to enable them to carry out their duties or undergo training.

Employers that fail to do this could face an Employment Tribunal claim against them and will need prove to a tribunal that they've complied with the new right. The tribunal will take the Acas Code of Practice into account and can require an employer to pay compensation if they lose.

New requirement: Giving time off and facilities to trade union equality representatives

From 30 October 2026, employers are required to give an equality representative of a recognised trade union (i.e. someone who's appointed or elected via the union's rules) time off during their working hours to:

• Carry out activities for the purpose of promoting the value of equality in the workplace.
• Arrange learning or training on matters relating to equality in the workplace.
• Provide information, advice or support to qualifying members of the trade union in relation to matters relating to equality in the workplace.
• Consult with the employer on matters relating to equality in the workplace.
• Obtain and analyse information relating to equality in the workplace.
• Prepare to carry out any of the above activities.

Equality representatives work to eliminate discrimination, harassment, victimisation and any other conduct prohibited by the Equality Act 2010 and advance equal opportunities and foster good relations between those who share a relevant protected characteristic (age, disability, gender reassignment, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation) and those who don't.

Employers must apply this new right in accordance with the (updated) Acas Code of Practice. If agreed (after considering any provision of the Acas Code of Practice), they should give the equality representative a reasonable amount of time off work to undergo any required training or to otherwise perform their functions and, if requested by them, provide reasonable accommodation and other facilities for those purposes.

If an employer fails to do this, they can face an Employment Tribunal claim and will need to prove to a tribunal that they've complied with the new right. The tribunal will take the Acas Code of Practice into account and can require your employer to pay compensation if they lose.

Amended right: Changes to unfair practices in the trade union recognition and derecognition process

The government made changes to deal with unfair practices during the recognition and derecognition process. These are reflected in the amended Code of Practice: Access and unfair practices during the recognition and derecognition process.