The UK Employment Rights Bill (the ERB) has now reached the final parliamentary stages and is expected to receive Royal Assent this month, with certain measures coming into effect at Royal Assent or soon afterwards. In this blog post, we outline some key changes affecting trade unions and industrial action.
The ERB also contains other measures, including reforms to unfair dismissal rights, family leave, and workplace protections, which we will cover in a future blog post.
Repeal of the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act 2023
On the day of Royal Assent, the ERB will repeal the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act 2023, together with provisions in the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992.
This will remove the Government’s ability to define minimum service levels which must be maintained during industrial action across a range of public services, including health, education, fire and rescue, transport, border security and nuclear decommissioning.
Employers in those sectors will no longer be able to issue work notices requiring certain individuals to attend work during strike action. As a result, industrial action may have greater operational and reputational impact on those public services.
Repeal of most provisions of the Trade Union Act 2016
The ERB will also repeal certain provisions under the Trade Union Act 2016. Some of these changes will take effect two months after Royal Assent and others will follow later after consultation.
Key changes taking effect two months after Royal Assent include:
Balloting thresholds: industrial action will be lawful if supported by a simple majority of votes cast. Currently, for key public services, it is also necessary for at least 40% of those entitled to vote, to vote in favour. That requirement will be removed.
Notice periods: unions will be required to give 10 days’ notice to employers of strike action, rather than 14 days. At the same time, the period after which a ballot ceases to be effective – which is currently six months subject to extension by agreement – will be increased to 12 months.
Ballot notices and voting papers: unions will no longer face additional obligations relating to ballot notices and voting papers. For example, it will no longer be necessary to provide a summary of the issues in dispute or specify the type of industrial action proposed in a voting paper.
Certification Officer powers: investigative and enforcement powers introduced in 2016 will be withdrawn, along with the requirement for unions and employers’ associations to fund the office via a levy.
Key changes taking effect after Royal Assent and following consultation include:
Electronic ballots: the ERB paves the way for secure electronic balloting, with consultation on implementation expected following Royal Assent. The Government expects that this change will increase participation in ballots.
Although many of these changes will arguably simplify the process for unions to initiate industrial action, certain elements may also appeal to employers. For instance, introducing electronic balloting could boost participation rates, potentially requiring unions to secure a more robust mandate before proceeding with action. Streamlining the notice procedures may lead to fewer legal disputes over technicalities, which in turn could save employers time and resources - allowing them to concentrate on resolving the core issues at hand.
Duty to inform workers of right to join a trade union
The UK Government has recognised that a lack of awareness of the right to join a union may contribute to reduced worker engagement in collective bargaining. As such, the ERB will require employers to give workers a written statement that they have the right to join a trade union. On 23 October 2025, the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) launched a consultation on the new duty. It is proposed that this duty will apply at the start of a worker’s employment – to be delivered alongside the section 1 statement – potentially with an annual reminder.
The consultation seeks views from stakeholders in relation to the practical aspects of the duty and covers the following key areas:
the form and content of the written statement;
the manner of delivery (both for new and existing workers); and
the frequency with which the statement should be provided.
The consultation will close on 18 December 2025, following which details will be implemented via secondary legislation.
Rights of access for trade unions
The ERB will also introduce a right for trade unions to access workplaces for certain purposes. ‘Access’ for these purposes includes physical access and potentially also the right to communicate with workers digitally.
The ERB currently provides that a union may provide an employer with a request for access. If both parties agree to the terms of access, they will notify the Central Arbitration Committee (CAC) to record the terms and proceed. If agreement is not reached in a set timeframe, either the union or employer can refer the case to the CAC for determination. The CAC will enforce access agreements and there may ultimately be financial penalties for employers who do not comply with them. The ERB currently sets out a broad framework, but regulations will be required to flesh out the detail of this new right.
On 23 October 2025, the DBT launched a consultation covering:
how unions will request access and how employers will respond (including form and manner of access requests, responses and CAC notifications, and time periods for responses, negotiation and CAC referral);
what factors the CAC will take into account on determination (including proposals that employers with fewer than 21 workers will be exempt from the right of access and certain circumstances where it is reasonable for access not to be granted); and
how the CAC will determine fines for breaches of access agreements (including a proposal for a two-stage maximum fine value of £75,000 for an initial breach and £150,000 for repeated breaches).
While the majority of the proposals in the consultation appear to be relatively balanced, there are some tight timescales proposed for employers – such as a maximum of five working days for an employer to respond to an access request.
This consultation will also close on 18 December 2025 and will be followed by secondary legislation. Importantly, the consultation confirms that there will be a separate consultation in Spring 2026 on a new Code of Practice on trade union access, which will include best practice and practical guidance for unions and employers.
Takeaways
The upcoming changes to the trade union legal landscape are likely to make it simpler for unions to gain recognition, secure workplace access, and initiate industrial action. At the same time, by cutting down on procedural complexity, the reforms may offer advantages to employers as well.
The level of impact of these changes on employee involvement in union activities remains uncertain. While some of these changes might sway the outcome in tightly contested ballots, our view is that they are unlikely to bring about a major shift in industrial relations overall. Digitising union processes was always going to happen eventually, but how effective these reforms will be depends heavily on the specifics of any secondary legislation, which will be released following the consultations explained above. That said, we anticipate a rise in union engagement - especially among younger workers - as a result of these changes.
As noted above, the government is taking a phased approach to implementing the ERB. Whilst some measures will take effect on Royal Assent or two months later, others will be implemented via separate regulations following consultation. We will continue to monitor these developments and the progress of the various consultations.
For information on the ERB and its implications on employers, please see a summary of the key changes here and download our detailed ERB briefing here.
If you would like to discuss in further detail any of the points raised in this blog post, please get in touch with your usual Freshfields contact.
