The much debated, often criticised, and sometimes championed Employment Rights Act 2025 (ERA) is now (finally) law. This package of new UK laws represents substantial reform that will change how employment relationships are managed for many years to come.
Although the ERA is already on the statute book, the changes will not come all at once. Instead, its provisions will be phased in across 2026 and into 2027, with secondary legislation, guidance, and consultation filling in many of the operational details along the way. That creates both opportunity and uncertainty for employers, particularly those operating in fast-moving, project-based industries such as the games industry.
This article is the first in a short series designed to help UK games businesses understand what the ERA means for them in practice and how they can start preparing now. First up, we are going to look specifically at trade union reform. Not because it is necessarily the most significant area of legal change, but because it lands at a moment when union activity is becoming a consistently defining and topical development within the games industry globally.
Unionisation and the games industry
Over the past few years, unionisation within the games sector has moved from being a niche or US-centric issue to a mainstream industry conversation. High-profile examples include union drives and recognition efforts at major studios, the ratification of collective agreements in quality assurance teams, and increasingly organised public responses to layoffs, restructurings and studio closures.
While much of the coverage has focused on North America, the UK is not immune to these dynamics. Rising living costs, concerns around job security, crunch, outsourcing, AI, and perceived imbalance in bargaining power have all contributed to greater interest in collective representation among games workers.
Against that backdrop, the ERA introduces a suite of reforms that will make it easier for trade unions to organise, gain recognition, communicate with workers, and take industrial action. For games businesses, and particularly studios that have historically operated without union representation, these changes are likely to accelerate trends that are already underway.
The key question is not whether union-related issues will arise, but how prepared employers will be to engage with them constructively, lawfully, and strategically.
The ERA will reform UK trade union law in stages. While some of the details will be set out in regulations and following consultations later this year, the direction of travel is clear: reducing procedural hurdles for unions and expanding statutory protections for workers involved in trade union activity.
Changes taking effect from February 18, 2026
From February 18, 2026, the first tranche of reform regarding trade union law will take effect. These initial changes will not change the law governing “unionisation” (which is the topical issue for games businesses currently, and which relates to the attempts by workers and unions to secure legal recognition of a trade union within a company for collective bargaining purposes – in other words, placing legal obligations on a studio to consult collectively with a union over employee pay, benefits, and other workplace matters).
The February changes instead relate to the laws regarding industrial action (e.g., how strikes can lawfully be organised) and the associated worker protections relevant when such action is taken. The key changes are below:
- Simplified industrial action rules. The process for organising lawful industrial action (which includes strikes, but also action “short of a strike”, such as overtime bans or picketing) will be streamlined. In particular, balloting requirements will be simplified, and the amount of notice unions must give employers before industrial action takes place will be reduced from 14 days to 10 days. Although these changes might sound modest, in practice they will embolden unions who are considering strike action and shorten the window for employers to respond, plan mitigation measures, or seek dialogue before action begins.
- Extended strike mandates. Currently, a lawfully run ballot authorising industrial action will only provide a mandate for such action for a six-month period. Under the ERA, strike mandates will last for up to 12 months. This gives unions greater flexibility to time action strategically and reduces the need for repeat ballots.
- Protection from detriment for workers taking part in industrial action. Workers will gain statutory protection from “prescribed detriments” for participating in lawful industrial action. While the precise scope of these protections will not be defined until later regulations are published (expected some time during 2026), the intention is to prevent workers from being penalised in subtler ways, short of dismissal. For games businesses, this will probably mean careful thought will be required around how things like performance management, project allocation, and overtime/crunch considerations are handled during periods of industrial tension.
Changes taking effect from April 6, 2026
Given the current climate within the games industry, the most significant reforms for most games businesses are those coming in April. These specifically relate to unionisation, because they will govern the process for how a trade union obtains formal recognition within a company (i.e., becomes legally entitled to collectively bargain with the employer on behalf of a group of workers within a workplace).
At present, unions seeking statutory recognition within a company must navigate a fairly complex, multi-stage process that includes demonstrating: (a) that there is at least 10% union membership within the relevant group of employees they are proposing to represent; and (b) that a majority of their members within that group support recognition and (importantly) that at least 40% of the entire employee group is also in favour.
The ERA will materially simplify this process. Once the changes come in, the government will have the power to reduce the minimum membership threshold from 10% to as low as 2%. Arguably more significantly, the 40% overall support requirement will be removed. This means that only a simple majority of the voting union members within the relevant employee group will be required.
“This is a wide ranging and substantial set of reforms that will inevitably make it much easier for a trade union to get formal recognition within an employer”
There will also be new measures to prevent employers from artificially diluting bargaining units through mass recruitment. Safeguards against the recognition of employer-sponsored or non-independent unions will also be strengthened.
In practice, this is a wide ranging and substantial set of reforms that will inevitably make it much easier for a trade union to get formal recognition within an employer. This could be particularly significant for games businesses given the current backdrop referred to above, with union pressure likely to build even more at large studios or those with fragmented workforces, where turnout thresholds have historically been a barrier.
Changes expected later in 2026 (probably October)
There’s yet more coming later in 2026. Changes towards the end of 2026 will impact how unions communicate with workers and engage with employers.
- E-balloting. Trade union ballots (which means the legally mandated voting process, required in order to unionise or to organise industrial action) will for the first time be permitted electronically. Currently, ballots must be conducted by postal vote, which is time-consuming, expensive, and often leads to low participation. E-balloting is likely to significantly increase engagement and speed up union processes. This could actually be a very big change by itself.
- Union access to workplaces. A new statutory framework will give trade unions the right to negotiate access to workplaces, including both physical sites and digital environments. An enforcement regime will sit behind this, including potential financial penalties for non-compliance. Given many games businesses operate hybrid or remote-first models, digital access rights could be just as significant as physical access to offices.
- Mandatory union rights statement. Employers will be required to provide workers with a written statement informing them of their right to join a trade union. Most employers will probably incorporate this into employment contracts or onboarding documentation, and the change is seen as a symbolic shift towards normalising union membership.
So, what does this all mean for games businesses?
First things first, these reforms do not mandate unionisation. Lots of businesses, including many within the games industry, will continue to operate without union activity. However, the reforms are nevertheless significant. They materially alter the environment and statutory framework within which union activity can take place and they do so at a time when many of those working at games companies are already more receptive to collective organisation.
For studios, publishers and other games businesses operating in the UK, there are several practical implications.
- Union approaches will become more likely and will be more likely to succeed. Lower recognition thresholds, faster balloting, and improved access rights mean that union approaches are more likely to progress quickly. Businesses that are caught off-guard or respond reactively might find their options narrowing faster than expected. Preparation does not mean opposition. It means understanding the legal framework, having a clear internal strategy, and ensuring decision-makers know how to engage lawfully and constructively.
- Employment practices will face greater scrutiny. Union involvement tends to shine a light on areas such as: pay structures and progression; use of fixed-term or project-based contracts; overtime, crunch, and working hours; performance management and redundancy processes; and diversity, equity and inclusion practices. Studios should expect greater transparency and challenge in these areas and consider whether current arrangements would stand up to collective scrutiny.
- Documentation matters. Policies, contracts and handbooks are often overlooked until they become central to a dispute or recognition campaign. Ensuring that these documents are up to date, consistent, and defensible is a sensible preparatory step, particularly before any recognition process is underway.
Top tips for preparing now
Although much of the ERA is still to be implemented, there are concrete steps that games businesses can take today to reduce risk and increase confidence:
- Plan for union engagement. Decide in advance how your business would respond to a recognition request or organising activity. Who would be involved? What tone will be taken? What are the red lines?
- Audit reward and working practices. Identify areas that might attract union interest and consider whether changes or clearer communication are needed.
- Train managers. Front-line managers play a crucial part in how union activity unfolds. Ensuring they understand what they can and cannot do is essential.
- Get documents in order. Review contracts, policies, and onboarding materials so they are robust before scrutiny increases.
What’s next?
Wiggin will be running a webinar in the coming weeks focusing specifically on trade union considerations within the games industry. We’ll be covering the ERA changes in more detail and will explore further what practical and strategic steps studios and publishers need to be thinking about.
This article is the first in a three-part series. The next two pieces will look at other major employment law reforms coming under the ERA, including changes to the laws on unfair dismissal, flexible working, and the expansion of employer liability for harassment (which will soon cover liability for harassment committed by contractors and other third parties).
As the legal and HR landscape shifts, games businesses that prepare rather than panic will stand a better chance of navigating the changes successfully.
