Changes to Union Access rights:
Changes proposed by the Government have substantially altered the rights of access.
The presumption of a right to access worksites will be removed.
In its place will be a requirement for Union officials to gain the consent of an employer before entering the site.
This requirement will be subject to a provision that this consent may not be unreasonably withheld. This provision may act as a safeguard against employers flatly refusing access.
However, the change places the onus for challenging such a refusal on the Union concerned, which gives rise to a risk that access will in practice be denied or delayed, and gives rise to a possibility of time-consuming and costly legal challenges, before access is gained.