The UK’s Fair Work Agency is urging employers to self-report employment law breaches before they are identified through inspection. Speaking on the Inside the Workroom podcast with Kevin Fitzgerald, UK Managing Director of Employment Hero, Chief Executive Lisa Pinney MBE said the agency is seeking a cooperative approach with responsible employers.
“Everybody makes mistakes. If you find a problem, put it right and let us know. We want to work with legitimate businesses that want to do the right thing.”
Lisa explained the agency’s approach to self-reporting and enforcement:
“Where businesses do come forward, the agency works with them. Those that don’t, and are subsequently found to be significantly non-compliant, face follow-up inspections and enforcement action. That’s generally the approach for things like National Minimum Wage, employment agency compliance – and it’s likely to be the case for holiday pay and statutory sick pay enforcement too.”
What SMEs are getting wrong on compliance
Pinney said many employer concerns stem from uncertainty rather than deliberate non-compliance and can often be resolved through basic checks. When asked about anxiety surrounding the Employment Rights Act, she said:
“A lot of these are things that have been the right things to do for a while – they’ve just got more powers, more teeth. There’s a lot of concern around this, but I think a lot of it comes back to the same steps, really.”
She added that the core actions for employers are:
“Ensure that your policies and procedures are up to date. Make sure that your employees are receiving the pay and conditions they’re entitled to.”
Fair Work Agency: top 5 compliance tips for SMEs
- Conduct a simple compliance review covering pay, contracts and working practices
- Keep policies and procedures up to date and ensure employees are receiving the pay and conditions they are legally entitled to
- Maintain simple, accurate records to demonstrate compliance
- Self-report issues when identified and take corrective action promptly
- Use digital tools and AI to support compliance, while maintaining human oversight
What comes next
Further Employment Rights Act measures are expected to expand the agency’s remit over the next two years, including changes to unfair dismissal protections in January 2027, alongside reforms to zero-hours contracts, shift notice rights and collective redundancy consultation obligations.
The Fair Work Agency is currently scaling its digital capability and support tools, including a planned innovation hub focused on improving compliance guidance and the use of technology in enforcement.
“Records don’t have to be complex. They should be proportionate to the size of your business.” Lisa said.