Trade union workplace access ‘risks disruption’ – Daily Business

Angela Rayner introduced employment rights

A new law giving trade unions regular access to workplaces risks unnecessary disruption to businesses, according to a number of trade groups.

The government confirmed on Wednesday that unions could communicate directly with workers in person or digitally at least once a week in firms with more than 21 members of staff.

If employers do not allow this they could be fined £75,000 for the first breach, rising to £150,000 and then up to £500,000 for a third breach.

The change is part of the Employment Rights Act, which was steered through parliament by former deputy prime minister Angela Rayner. It also introduces enforcement officers for the new Fair Work Agency (FWA), which began work this week and will have powers of surveillance when investigating those suspected of breaching employment law.

The FWA, which has a £60 million budget, has been given a broad remit to enforce employment rights, including minimum wage, sick pay and holiday pay, and tackle modern slavery and labour exploitation. 

The new body brings together the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA), the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate (EAS), and takes responsibility from HMRC for its National Minimum Wage Unit, and will continue to name employers who fail to pay the lawful amount.

Kate Shoesmith, the director of policy at the British Chambers of Commerce, said: “Smaller firms fear that plans to give trade unions new rights of access to their premises will damage productivity at a time when they are already under significant pressure.

“Good employment relations are created by transparent and direct contact between employers and their teams. Inserting a third party into that equation will be a complicating and unnecessary distraction for many companies. ”

Matthew Percival, CBI future of work and skills director, said: “Granting every union a right to access every workplace on a weekly basis risks adding disruption and distracting employers from their core focus of creating jobs and delivering economic growth, with little benefit for workers.

“Bringing employers and unions together to agree how these rules should work is the only way to ensure a constructive and long-lasting outcome. If this were to have happened, businesses may have been willing to accept more targeted access rights, underpinned by clear safeguards to ensure powers were used responsibly.

“This will be especially difficult to understand for businesses whose workforce is already represented by a union yet would still be required to grant access to other unions. 

“It is welcome that the government has acknowledged that businesses need adequate time to consider and respond to access requests. But a truly balanced approach would ensure each party has a requirement to act reasonably, not place strict expectations on employers while trusting that unions will be reasonable.”

Helen Dickinson, chief executive at the British Retail Consortium, said: “Many retailers have constructive relationships with unions but allowing weekly access to multi-site workplaces would be disruptive to service for customers, with no clear benefit to employees.

“While it’s good news government has acknowledged that its timeframes for responding to trade union access requests were unworkable, weekly access is unnecessary, excessive, and disruptive.

“Retail is the UK’s biggest private sector employer, so we are concerned that government is rushing through the accompanying Code of Practice, which defines how this will work in practice. It is critical government engages with the very businesses who will have to implement these reforms before rushing headlong into an inflexible and inappropriate approach.”

The Fair Work Agency is chaired by former Blair government adviser Matthew Taylor, who was commissioned in 2016 by Theresa May during her time in Number Ten to lead the Taylor Review of Modern Working Practices. It provided the foundation for many of the reforms now being delivered through the Employment Rights Act. 

Speaking about the changes now being implemented, UK Business Secretary Peter Kyle said:  “The current enforcement system doesn’t deliver for businesses or working people.

“Our Fair Work Agency will be a game-changer in ensuring rights are properly enforced, whilst backing those businesses that already do the right thing.”

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