Trade Union Information Duty Delayed Until January 2027: What Employers Need To Know

Employers have been waiting for further guidance on the forthcoming duty to inform workers of their right to join a trade union. Following the recent Government update, Employers now have a little more breathing space on one of the forthcoming changes to trade union law.

The Government has confirmed that the new duty to inform will come into force on 1 January 2027, rather than at the end of October 2026. The duty forms part of the changes introduced by the Employment Rights Act 2025 and will apply to employers in England, Scotland and Wales. 

Importantly, this is only a postponement rather than a change of direction. The Government has now published its response to the consultation, giving employers a much clearer picture of what they will be expected to do.

What will employers have to do?

From 1 January 2027, employers will be required to provide workers with a standardised written statement explaining their right to join a trade union. 

Although the regulations containing the final requirements have not yet been made, the Government has provided further clarity on what they will contain:

• A standard form will be prescribed. Employers will only be able to amend it where required or permitted to include workplace-specific information. 
• The statement will provide neutral information about trade unions. This will include a brief explanation of the functions of a trade union and a summary of statutory rights relating to union membership. 
• Existing union arrangements will need to be identified. Where applicable, the statement will include details of recognised trade unions, and will also include relevant information about unions with which the employer has a statutory access agreement. 
• Information about other unions must be available. Employers will need either to include a link to the Certification Officer’s list of trade unions or provide a copy alongside the statement. 
• New starters must receive the statement directly. From 1 January 2027, it will need to be provided at the same time as the worker receives their written statement of employment particulars. 

What about existing workers?

Employers will need to provide the statement to workers who are already employed when the new duty takes effect and who remain employed on 5 April 2027. This must be done by 5 April 2027. 

There will be two possible approaches:

• Direct communication, for example by email, post or in person. Employers adopting this approach will then need to provide the statement directly to workers annually by 5 April; or
• Indirect communication, for example by making the statement available on the intranet or in a staff handbook. Employers will need to tell workers where to find it, keep it continuously and reasonably accessible and issue an annual reminder by 5 April telling workers that it is available and where it can be found. 

There is also an important ongoing obligation. Where the identity of a trade union with a recognition or statutory access agreement changes, the statement will need to be reissued within one month. If an employer relies on indirect communication and changes the location of the statement, workers will need to be informed directly of its new location. 

What should employers be doing now?

There is no need to issue the statement early, particularly as the Government intends to prescribe a standard form. In fact, employers should avoid designing their own version when the Government intends to prescribe a standard form.

However, we recommend that employers use the next few months wisely to prepare for the upcoming changes:

• review onboarding processes and identify where the new statement can be incorporated alongside written particulars from 1 January 2027;
• decide how to communicate with existing workers, including whether direct communication or an intranet/handbook approach will be most practical;
• identify any recognised trade unions or statutory access agreements and collate the necessary details, including relevant contacts and the parts of the workforce covered;
• check HR systems and workforce records to ensure the obligation is captured for workers, rather than assuming it only applies to employees;
• build an annual compliance reminder into the HR calendar ahead of 5 April each year;
• identify responsibility internally for monitoring changes to union recognition or statutory access arrangements, given the requirement to reissue the statement following relevant changes; and
• keep an audit trail showing when and how statements and annual reminders have been provided.

What happens next?

Some of the finer detail is still to come. The Government says that secondary legislation setting out the specific requirements is expected to be laid before Parliament in November 2026, with further detailed guidance expected shortly afterwards. 

Employers should therefore avoid treating the consultation response as the final word and should check their arrangements against the regulations and final guidance once published.