Trade union access rights: Why SMEs should prepare before October 2026

The Employment Rights Act 2025 will bring significant changes to trade union rights, with further changes expected in October 2026.

Acas confirms that these include updated rules on trade union workplace access, a new duty to inform workers of their right to join a union, and related rights around facilities and time off.

Now's the time to start preparing for these changes, so here's what you need to know.

How this affects your operations

Many small businesses don't have an HR department. Many will also have little or no previous experience of formally engaging with trade unions.

The new framework for trade union access is intended to cover both physical and digital access, to better reflect modern workplaces, the rise of hybrid working and the wider use of digital communication.

The government has confirmed that further detail will sit within secondary legislation and a statutory Code of Practice.

That's why you should start thinking now about how this will work operationally.

I would approach trade union access requests in a similar way to how you manage other formal statutory processes, such as subject access requests. The law isn't the same, but the internal discipline is similar.

There's also a wider people management point. In the same way that mental health at work has gradually become embedded into ordinary management practice, trade union access rights will need to be assimilated into normal operations too.

For small businesses, the key questions are likely to be as follows:

• Who receives a trade union access request?

• Who logs and acknowledges it?

• Who has authority to respond on the business's behalf?

• What records should we keep?

• Who briefs line managers?

• What should managers say, and what should they avoid saying?

• When should the business seek HR or legal advice from outside the business?

• How can the business keep to the new law without unnecessarily disrupting operations?

The importance of being prepared

If you wait until a request arrives, you may find yourself reacting under pressure.

A business that's already created a simple process will be in a much better position to respond calmly, consistently and lawfully.

Here are the practical steps I would recommend taking:

• Designate someone as the key contact who will manage trade union access requests.

• Create a simple internal process for receiving, logging, escalating and responding to requests.

• Train managers on what trade union access means in practice.

• Make clear what managers should not do, including obstructing access, reacting defensively or making informal commitments without authority.

• Maintain positive relations with staff.

• Keep clear records of requests, responses, discussions and decisions.

• Monitor the final secondary legislation, Statutory Code of Practice and Acas guidance as they are published.

Building systems for engaging constructively with trade unions

The government consultation on the draft Code of Practice for trade union access closed on 20 May 2026, so you shouldn't treat the current position as fully finalised.

However, the direction of travel is clear. As a business, you'll need practical systems for handling access requests and engaging constructively with trade unions.

For HR professionals, the role will be to translate the legal framework into SME-friendly systems, such as:

• checklists

• guidance for managers

• escalation routes

• record-keeping templates

• practical advice that business owners can actually use

Upcoming webinar: 16 June 2026

In my view, there's important work to do at the front end.

Don't wait until a trade union access request lands in your inbox. Instead, review how this new requirement will sit within your existing management structures, communication channels and employee relations processes.

I'm hosting a webinar on this topic on Tuesday 16 June to help SMEs prepare for the October 2026 trade union changes in a calm, structured and operationally realistic way. Sign up for free now!

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