According to the Government’s roadmap for delivering their Plan to Make Work Pay, the Employment Rights Bill (ERB) will be implemented in at least four phases, the first one being at or soon after the Bill receives Royal Assent. This means the first round of changes could come into effect as early as the end of the year.
If your business recognises a trade union, it is vital that you are prepared for these upcoming reforms, which are set to be introduced in Phase 1 of the Bill:
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Repeal of the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act 2023
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Repeal of the majority of the Trade Union Act 2016
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Removal of the 10-year ballot requirement for trade union political funds
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Simplification of industrial action and ballot notice requirements
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Protection against dismissal for taking industrial action
Repeal of the Trade Union Act 2016 and the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act 2023
The Government believes the Trade Union Act 2016 introduced unnecessary restrictions and red tape around union activity. Repealing this, along with the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act 2023, is intended to reset industrial relations between unions, employers, and workers.
The ERB proposes to revert industrial relations legislation to pre-2016 conditions, with three key exceptions:
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The ballot mandate expiration date will be retained, but extended from 6 to 12 months
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The notice period for industrial action will be shortened from 14 days to 10 days (pre-2016 it was 7 days)
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The independence of the Certification Officer from ministerial direction will be maintained
Beyond these, repealing the 2016 Act will introduce several changes:
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Political Funds: New union members will automatically be opted in to contribute unless they expressly opt out
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Check-off System: Unions will no longer have to pay for the administration of check-off arrangements in the public sector
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Facility Time: Public sector employers will no longer be required to publish information on facility time, nor will the Government have powers to cap it
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Industrial Action Reporting: Unions will no longer be required to meet additional reporting obligations regarding voting and action
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Strike Ballots: Only a simple majority of voting members will be required to authorise industrial action
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40% Support Threshold: This requirement, currently applied to critical public services, will be removed
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Picketing: The legal requirement for a picket supervisor will be removed
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Electronic Balloting: The requirement to review electronic balloting will be repealed; instead, the Government will consult a working group to modernise the process
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Certification Officer: Will lose investigatory powers based on third-party complaints or self-initiative, and will no longer be able to impose financial penalties or make declarations on annual returns. However, they will retain powers to investigate financial affairs
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Levy Payments: The power to require unions and employers’ associations to contribute to the Certification Officer’s funding will be removed
Removing the 10-Year Ballot Requirement for Trade Union Political Funds
Currently, trade unions must hold a ballot every 10 years to maintain a political fund. Members are automatically opted out of contributing unless they choose to opt in.
The ERB will reverse this, meaning:
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New members will be automatically opted in and can choose to opt out
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The requirement to hold a ballot every 10 years will be abolished
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Instead, trade unions must send a reminder to members every 10 years informing them of their right to opt out
This change is part of the Government’s wider effort to ease union operations and streamline political fund maintenance.
Simplifying Industrial Action and Ballot Notices
The ERB intends to simplify the data unions must provide in notices for ballots and industrial action.
Currently, industrial action ballot notices must include:
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Categories of workers being balloted
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Workplaces in which those workers are employed
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The total number of workers concerned
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The number of workers in each category and location
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An explanation of how these numbers were calculated
Similarly, industrial action notices must include:
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Categories of workers taking part
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Workplaces where they work
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Total number of affected workers
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Breakdown by category and location
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An explanation of how these figures were calculated
Under the ERB, requirements will change as follows:
Ballot notices must include:
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Total number of employees in each worker category
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Number of workers concerned at each workplace
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Explanation of how figures were calculated
Industrial action notices must include:
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Number of affected workers in each category
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(and the explanation for how the figure was determined)
These changes will reduce administrative burden and simplify union processes.
Protections Against Dismissal for Industrial Action
There is currently a legal conflict between the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 and Article 11 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which came under scrutiny during a Supreme Court ruling in 2024.
At present, employees are only protected from unfair dismissal if industrial action lasts 12 weeks or less.
The ERB will remove this 12-week cap. Once passed, workers taking protected industrial action will be safeguarded regardless of how long the strike lasts, ensuring stronger legal protections against dismissal.
