The Trade Unions (Permissible Means of Voting) and Employment Rights (Unfair Dismissal) (Amendment) Order 2026

Published: Wed 29th Jul 26

This Order amends the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 and the Employment Rights Act 1996 to permit trade unions to conduct elections and industrial action ballots via electronic, hybrid, and workplace voting in addition to traditional postal methods.

It directs a 'responsible person' within the union to determine which voting methods are available for a given ballot based on specific security and accessibility criteria.

The Order applies to trade unions, employers, and independent scrutineers, mandating strict technical standards such as Cyber Essentials Plus certification, data encryption, and the maintenance of comprehensive audit logs.

Arguments For

The order states that introducing electronic and hybrid voting provides more flexible means for union members to participate in ballots and elections.
The legislation asserts that the required security standards, including Cyber Essentials Plus certification for scrutineers, ensure the integrity and confidentiality of the voting process.
Proponents argue that workplace voting provides a convenient opportunity for employees to vote directly at their place of work.
The document indicates that permitting multiple means of voting allows responsible persons to tailor ballots to the specific accessibility needs and preferences of their members.

Arguments Against

Legal scholars may question the potential for employer interference or monitoring during workplace voting despite the prohibition on such activities.
Affected agencies might highlight the technical complexity and costs associated with maintaining encrypted electronic voting systems and multi-factor authentication databases.
Critics could argue that the reliance on mobile phone numbers and personal email addresses for distributing voting access methods may exclude members who lack digital access or literacy.
Implementation difficulties may arise from the requirement to coordinate with employers for workplace voting locations and access agreements.

PART 1 Introductory

Citation, commencement, extent and interpretation

-(1) This Order may be cited as the Trade Unions (Permissible Means of Voting) and Employment Rights (Unfair Dismissal) (Amendment) Order 2026.

(2) Parts 1 and 3 come into force on the day after the day on which this Order is made.

(3) Subject to paragraph (4), Part 2 comes into force on the 28th day after the day on which this Order is made.

(4) Article 7(12)(b) comes into force on the date on which section 68(3)(c) of the Employment Rights Act 2025( d ) comes into force.

(5) This Order extends to England and Wales and Scotland.

(6) In this Order, 'the 1992 Act' means the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992( e ).

This section establishes the official title of the Order and sets the schedule for when its different parts take effect.

Part 1 and Part 3 begin the day after the Order is signed, while most of Part 2 begins 28 days later.

It specifies that the law applies to England, Wales, and Scotland.

PART 2 Amendment of the 1992 Act

The 1992 Act is amended in accordance with this Part.

Amendment of Chapter 4 of Part 1

-(1) Chapter 4 of Part 1 (elections for certain positions)( a ) is amended as follows.

(2) In section 46 (duty to hold elections for certain positions)-

(a) in subsections (1)(a), (5A) and (5B) for 'requirements of this Chapter' substitute 'relevant requirements';
(b) in subsection (5B)-
(i) after 'are' insert ', so far as applicable,';
(ii) for '47' substitute '46A';
(iii) at the end insert 'and Schedule A1A';
(c) in subsection (6)-
(i) after 'the provisions of this Chapter', in the first place it occurs, insert 'including, so far as applicable, Schedule A1A';
(ii) for 'the provisions of this Chapter', in the second place it occurs, substitute 'such provisions'.

(3) After section 46 insert-

'Determination of means of voting

46A Responsible person's determination of means of voting

(1) Before the election is held, the responsible person for the election must make a determination about the means of voting at the election.
(2) The determination must set out which one or more of the permissible means of voting is available for the election.
(3) Where the determination provides that more than one permissible means of voting is available for the election, the determination must also set out-
(a) that each of those means is available for each person who is entitled to vote at the election, or
(b) which one or more of those means is available for one or more of the following-
(i) particular persons who are entitled to vote at the election;
(ii) particular descriptions of persons who are entitled to vote at the election.
(4) Where the determination includes provision under subsection (3)(b), the determination must be such that at least one permissible means of voting is available for each person who is entitled to vote at the election.
(5) Where the determination provides-
(a) that more than one permissible means of voting is available for a particular person or description of persons, or
(b) that hybrid voting is available for an election,

the determination must include provision setting out which vote is to be counted in a case where a person casts more than one vote (and section 51ZA(4) applies for the purposes of construing the number of votes cast by a person).

(6) Schedule ZA1 sets out further requirements in relation to a determination by the responsible person.
(11) After section 53 insert-

'53A Small accidental failures in relation to electronic voting to be disregarded

(1) If-
(a) in relation to an election there is a failure (or there are failures) to comply with a provision mentioned in subsection (2) or with more than one of those provisions, and
(b) the failure is accidental and on a scale which is unlikely to affect the result of the election or, as the case may be, the failures are accidental and taken together are on a scale which is unlikely to affect the result of the election,

the failure (or failures), in so far as they relate to electronic voting, are to be disregarded for all purposes.

(2) The provisions are-
(a) section 48(1)(b) (requirement to distribute election addresses);
(b) section 49(7A) (requirement to send contact information to scrutineer);
(c) section 51(4)(b) (requirement to provide a convenient opportunity to vote);
(d) section 51ZA(2)(c) (requirement to send provision concerning how votes are counted where a person casts multiple votes);
(e) paragraph 12(1) of Schedule A1A (requirement to send electronic voting materials);
(f) paragraph 12(4) of Schedule A1A (requirement to use contact information provided by trade union).'.

This section introduces the requirement for trade unions to choose the voting methods for elections.

It mandates that every eligible voter must have access to at least one valid voting method and requires clear rules on which vote counts if a member uses multiple methods.

It also lists minor administrative errors that can be legally ignored if they are accidental and do not change the election result.

49 (appointment of independent scrutineer)-

(a) in subsection (2)-
(i) omit the 'and' after paragraph (a);
(ii) after paragraph (b) insert '; and
(c) in the case of an election for which electronic voting or hybrid voting is a selected means of voting, the computer networks and systems which the person intends to use for conducting the election are covered by one or more qualifying Cyber Essentials Plus certificates awarded to the person.';
(b) after subsection (2) insert-

'(2A) For the purposes of subsection (2)-

(a) 'Cyber Essentials Plus certificate' means a certificate awarded in accordance with Cyber Essentials Plus Test Specification v3.2( a ), or a later version of that document, published by the Government Communications Headquarters;
(b) a Cyber Essentials Plus certificate awarded to a person is a 'qualifying Cyber Essentials Plus certificate' if its expiry date is such that the certificate will remain valid for the duration of the election for which the person is appointed.';

Independent election overseers, known as scrutineers, must now hold a valid Cyber Essentials Plus certificate if electronic or hybrid voting is used.

This certificate confirms that the scrutineer's computer systems meet specific government-approved security standards for the duration of the election.

230C Workplace voting

Where workplace voting is a selected means of voting for a ballot, sections 230D to 230H apply in relation to workplace voting in the ballot.

230D Workplace voting: notice of ballot

Every person eligible to vote by workplace voting must be sent a notice stating-

(a) the location they need to attend to cast their vote;
(b) the operating hours and duration of the ballot;
(c) the times at which the employer of the persons eligible to vote by workplace voting will permit those persons to vote;
(d) the questions which will be included on the voting paper in accordance with section 229(2).

230E Workplace voting: additional requirements for conduct of ballot

(1) So far as is reasonably practicable, there must be as many voting stations as is necessary to give every person who is eligible to vote by workplace voting a convenient opportunity to vote.
(4) In order to vote, a person must-
(a) attend the qualifying location for a ballot,
(b) provide the scrutineer with their name and a form of identification which the scrutineer considers acceptable,
(c) be provided with a voting paper in accordance with subsection (6),
(d) mark the voting paper, and
(e) place the marked voting paper in a qualifying ballot box.

These sections regulate voting at a place of employment.

Unions must notify members of when and where they can vote, and employers must not unreasonably prevent employees from participating.

To vote, an employee must show identification to a scrutineer at the specified workplace location and cast a paper ballot in a sealed box.

230G Workplace voting: agreement with employer

(1) Before the ballot takes place, an agreement in writing must be made between the trade union and the employer of persons eligible to vote by workplace voting.
(2) The agreement must include provision about the following matters-
(a) the qualifying location at which the ballot will be conducted;
(b) access by the scrutineer to the workplace of persons eligible to vote by workplace voting, where this is necessary for the conduct of the ballot;
(c) where relevant, the employer's right to access the qualifying location in the case of an emergency;
(d) the operating hours and duration of the ballot;
(e) the times at which the employer of the persons eligible to vote by workplace voting will permit those persons to vote.
(3) The agreement must include the following provisions-
(a) the employer must not unreasonably prevent persons who are eligible to vote by workplace voting from voting by this means;
(b) the employer must not monitor the qualifying location;
(c) the employer must co-operate with the scrutineer and the trade union for the purposes of carrying out the ballot.

Unions and employers must sign a written agreement before workplace voting can occur.

This agreement prohibits the employer from monitoring the voting area and requires them to cooperate with the union and the scrutineer to ensure the ballot's privacy and security.

PART 3 Amendment of the Employment Rights Act 1996

In section 105 of the Employment Rights Act 1996( b ) (unfair dismissal: redundancy), in subsection (7C), omit paragraph (b) and the 'and' before it.

Transitional provision

-(1) Article 12 does not apply to protected industrial action taken by an employee where the employee started to take the action before 18th February 2026.

This part removes specific restrictions on unfair dismissal claims related to redundancy for employees taking industrial action.

It includes a transitional rule ensuring these changes do not apply to industrial action that began before February 18, 2026.

SCHEDULE 2

PART 1 ELECTRONIC VOTING AND HYBRID VOTING

2 (1) One or more voting access methods must be generated for each relevant person.
(2) A voting access method must-
(a) be unique,
(b) be designed in a way which is resistant to attempts to infer or create other voting access methods,
(c) be capable of being re-issued, and
(d) become ineffective once used or at the closure of the ballot.
3 (6) The electronic voting form and electronic voting platform must be designed so that data transmitted by submission of an electronic voting form is encrypted before being transmitted and is decrypted only once received by the scrutineer.
(7) The electronic voting platform must, when an electronic voting form has been submitted, display to the person who submitted it a message confirming that the vote has been successfully submitted.

This schedule sets the technical requirements for electronic voting systems.

It mandates the use of unique, secure access codes for each voter and requires that all submitted votes be encrypted during transmission to ensure secrecy and prevent tampering.

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