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What is the right of access?
From 30 October 2026, trade unions have the right to visit and communicate with workers in the workplace. This applies to all employers with 21 or more workers, including those employed by associated employers within Great Britain. If the employer does not agree to a union’s request for access, the Central Arbitration Committee (CAC) can decide whether access should be granted and on what terms. There is also a Code of Practice setting out how the access regime should work in practice.
The purpose of the right is to meet, support, represent, recruit or organise workers, and to facilitate collective bargaining. It cannot be used to organise industrial action. However, it is not just about recruitment to the union. It covers advocacy and advice as well.
The legislation sets out broad principles for how access should work. In summary, unions should be able to enter the workplace, communicate with workers digitally, or both, as long as this does not unreasonably interfere with the employer’s business. Employers must also take reasonable steps to facilitate access.
How does a union obtain access?
There is a legal framework for requesting access. It starts with the union making a formal request to the employer. Any independent trade union can request access for its officials – it does not need any level of membership within the workforce.
The employer then has 15 working days to respond, confirming its contact person, whether it agrees or disagrees with the request, and, if it disagrees, the reasons why. A standard response form is set out in the Code of Practice.
There is then a 25-day negotiation period, to allow for a negotiation about access terms.
If agreement is not reached, or the employer does not respond at all, the union may apply to the CAC. In most cases, it must apply within 55 working days of the original access request. That gives the union at least 15 working days after the negotiation period ends - roughly 11 weeks from the date of the original request.
The CAC will decide whether access should be granted and, if so, on what terms. There is a right of appeal to the Employment Appeal Tribunal, but this is very limited and generally only available where the CAC has applied the legal requirements incorrectly, not simply because one side disagrees with its assessment of the facts.
How will access work in practice?
Access terms
Regulations set out “model terms” for access agreements. The union and employer may agree different terms, and the CAC is not required to impose the model terms. However, where a union requests access on the model terms, the CAC is very likely to order them. In effect, the regulations require the CAC to treat a term that corresponds to a model term as reasonable.
The model terms are:
- Physical or digital access once every week
- Five working days’ notice for first instance of access
- Two working days’ notice for each subsequent access
- Existing meeting spaces and facilities to be made available as reasonable
- Employer to ensure privacy as far as reasonably possible
- Union officials to comply with all reasonable instructions from the employer (which may include providing identification)
The Code of Practice builds on these model terms by setting out best practice.
Physical or digital?
Physical access means coming on site for meetings, presentations or drop-in surgeries. Digital access means using channels such as emails, messaging systems or online meetings. The legislation is clear that physical access should not be refused just because digital access is made available, and vice versa.
The Code of Practice says that the union should, at the very least, be able to use the same communication methods the employer would typically use - for example, all-staff meetings, small meetings, emails or intranet posts. However, simply cascading a single email should not count as an instance of weekly access.
The option to communicate digitally with workers does not mean that the union can demand employee email addresses, phone numbers or other contact details. Disclosure of staff personal data would still require their consent. In practice, this means that the employer will be acting as the intermediary in many cases.
Which facilities?
The Code of Practice says that union officials should be able to meet workers at their actual workplace and in the location where they work - for example, in a meeting room, an adjoining work area, or wherever workers usually take their breaks (canteens, staff rooms, etc.). Employers should not be expected to make significant structural changes to their premises or IT systems to facilitate access. In exceptional circumstances access might need to be offsite at the union’s expense, but this would be unusual.
When should access take place?
The Code of Practice says that access should usually take place during normal working hours, but at times that minimise disruption to the employer’s activities - for example, during lunchtime or towards the end of a shift. Workers should be paid in full for time spent attending meetings.
Privacy
Privacy is one of the broad access principles set out in the legislation. To ensure privacy, the Code of Practice states that neither the employer nor any representative of the employer may attend an access meeting, although supervisors or managers can attend if invited by the union. Online meetings should not be recorded.
Third-party premises
Access can be ordered even if the employer does not control the premises where the workers are based. In those cases, the employer should engage with whoever does control the premises. If an access agreement cannot be negotiated, the CAC can make an access order and then (if invited to do so by the union or employer) enforce that order against the third party.
Exceptions
Exceptions from the right
As explained above, the union cannot gain access where the employer has fewer than 21 workers (including those employed by associated employers within Great Britain). The union also cannot gain access to private homes.
There is also no right of access where it would risk national security or a criminal investigation. In practice, though, employers in high-security settings would still be expected to facilitate access in a way that does not compromise security - for example, by holding meetings in areas accessible to the public.
The CAC may also refuse access if it considers this would jeopardise anyone’s health and safety, although this would be unusual. In most cases, such concerns could be addressed by requiring union officials to complete health and safety briefings or inductions and to follow any other reasonable rules.
What if another union is already recognised?
If the employer already recognises another union, or has an access agreement with another union, this is not an absolute bar to a second union gaining access. However, the regulations expressly state that it would be reasonable for the CAC to refuse access in these circumstances. This only applies where there is a genuine overlap - meaning at least one worker falls within scope of both the existing arrangement and the new access request. Existing recognition or access agreements that only cover certain populations or sites will not prevent access requests covering other populations or sites.
What if a recognition ballot is happening?
If a recognition ballot is already happening, it will be reasonable for the CAC to refuse an access request from another union, as long as at least one worker covered by the access request is also within the proposed bargaining unit.
Enforcement of access agreements
If an access agreement is negotiated within the legal framework explained above, it should be sent to the CAC. The agreement will not be a legally enforceable contract. Instead, it can only be enforced by way of a complaint to the CAC.
Either the employer or the trade union can complain to the CAC that the other party has breached the access agreement, or that a third party is obstructing access. For a first complaint, the CAC can order steps to be taken to ensure compliance. For second and subsequent complaints, the CAC can impose financial penalties, capped as follows:
- £75,000 for a first penalty
- £150,000 for a second penalty
- £500,000 for third and subsequent penalties.
