UK employers prepare for new trade union workplace access rights

The Government has confirmed that new trade union workplace access rights are due to come into force on 30 October this year. It has also laid the detailed regulations and revised Code of Practice before Parliament, subject to parliamentary approval.

The reforms are set to have a significant impact on workplaces across Great Britain and are expected to fundamentally change the way employers approach trade union workplace access. We’ll speak to one of our lawyers who is helping clients prepare for the new regime.

With the implementation date now confirmed and the detailed framework published, employers have a relatively short window to prepare. The new regime in introduces a formal statutory process with short statutory timescales for responding to and negotiating workplace access requests. The Code reflects a presumption in favour of workplace access wherever reasonably possible and, where employers and trade unions cannot reach agreement, the Central Arbitration Committee will have powers to determine the access arrangements.

For many employers, the key question is no longer whether they could receive a workplace access request, but whether they are ready to deal with one. For HR, that means taking steps now, while there is still time, to review workplace access arrangements, communication channels, internal procedures, and manager training, so you can respond with confidence when the new rights take effect and requests begin to arrive.

While employers will need to understand and follow the new statutory process, and take account of the Code, it’s important that HR professionals appreciate this is as much an employee relations issue as a legal one. So, let’s hear more on that. Anthony Convery is currently advising a number of clients ahead of the October changes and earlier he joined me by phone from Glasgow to discuss it:

Anthony Convery: “This is much more than a legal compliance exercise. I don't think it's an exaggeration to say that it's one of the biggest changes to UK industrial relations for many years. What it does is it gives trade unions a foot in the door, even before trade union recognition is in place, and it makes it easier for unions to recruit, organise, and communicate with workers and it's really important that employers look at this as an employee relations issue. It's not simply a legal issue, and what we're advising employers is to prepare now to reduce the risk of conflict later because organisations that wait until they receive a request can find themselves reacting under pressure. What’s important is that the organisations are prepared, ready to go, so that when they receive a request, they can put themselves in the best possible position.”

Joe Glavina: “Which employers are most likely to be affected by this new regime, Anthony?”

Anthony Convery: “This will affect a variety of employers but I can see that it will have a particular impact on workplaces which are not traditionally unionised, where there isn't traditionally a strong union presence, because unions will now have an opportunity to get in front of the workforce in those workplaces which they haven't had until now and I can see, for example, it having a particular impact on large employers with dispersed workforces where in the past, due to the dispersed nature of the workforce, it has been difficult for unions to get access to the employees but when trade union access request rights are in place, and particularly digital access rights, then it will be more possible for unions to be able to get their message out to those kinds of workforces. What's important to recognize is that just because an employer has good relations with its workforce doesn't mean that there won't be a request for trade union access and similarly employers with recognized unions will also need to review their existing arrangements because recognized trade unions are already approaching employers and seeking to renegotiate their arrangements, so it's not simply the case that an employer with a recognized union could ignore any of this because it will affect all types of employers, and it really is important – I can't stress this enough – that every employer needs to understand how the new process could affect their organisation in its own particular way.”

Joe Glavina: “What are the key steps you’re advising your clients to take now, before these rights come into force?”

Anthony Convery: “What we're saying to clients is that the starting point is that they need to understand the new statutory framework because there are strict timescales in place and it's important to comply with those because if not, the union can make a request for access to the Central Arbitration Committee and access can be imposed without the employer having the opportunity to shape what the access looks like, so that is absolutely key. From that starting point, we're saying to employers that they also need to have internal processes in place in order to deal with requests and that means deciding who owns the access request internally so it can be escalated to the right people, for example, HR and operations stakeholders, so that they can deal with requests consistently and in a timely fashion. We're also stressing to employers that they need to review their existing employee relations and communications channels because this is much more than a legal issue and there needs to be an employee relations strategy in place. Other advice we're giving is that employers need to consider how workplace access could operate across different sites, and they need to consider practical things like visitor arrangements on site, security, and IT arrangements at a high level, so that employers can identify what their red lines are in terms of access. So, what are the things that they can accommodate, and what are the things they cannot accommodate, and be in a position to be able to shape what the access looks like with those high level principles in mind. Another thing we're advising is that organisations train their senior HR and operational managers in order to deal with the requests, so they have the knowledge of the statutory framework and also how it impacts on the organisation at a practical level. All of this really boils down to developing an organisational approach to access requests before receiving a live request so that the employer is in the best possible position to respond.”

Anthony and the team are already advising a number of clients on the new trade union access regime, helping them prepare ahead of the October reforms. If you’d like help understanding what the changes could mean for your business, and the practical steps you should be taking now, Anthony and the team would be happy to help. Please contact Anthony in the first instance – his details are there on the screen for you.