⚖️ The Fair Work Agency: A new enforcement era for UK employment rights
- sid849
- Apr 22
- 2 min read
What is it?
The Fair Work Agency (FWA) is a new government body that launched on 7 April 2026 under the Employment Rights Act 2025. It brings several existing enforcement bodies under one roof, including HMRC's National Minimum Wage team, the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority, and the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate. The aim is a joined up, better resourced regulator that can enforce workers' rights more proactively than the fragmented system before it.
What you need to know
From day one, the FWA has powers to investigate businesses, access records and interview individuals. It's initially focusing on National Minimum Wage, modern slavery, gangmaster licensing and agency worker compliance, with HMRC continuing to handle NMW alongside the FWA until a full handover by April 2027.
Over time, its remit will expand to include Statutory Sick Pay and holiday pay, and it will be able to bring tribunal claims on a worker's behalf where the worker is unable or unwilling to.
From 6 April 2026, employers must keep adequate records of holiday entitlement and holiday pay for six years. Failure to do so is a criminal offence punishable by a fine.
Crucially, the FWA can open proactive investigations based on its own intelligence, without waiting for an employee to complain. Underpayment penalties can reach up to 200% of the arrears owed.
What it means for you
Until now, enforcement of many employment rights has largely relied on employees bringing their own tribunal claims. That's changing. Expect a more visible regulator that can walk in, ask for records and take action.
The areas most likely to attract attention are minimum wage compliance, holiday pay calculations (particularly for part time, casual or irregular hours staff), record keeping, and agency or umbrella worker arrangements. Smaller businesses often carry the most risk here, not through deliberate wrongdoing, but through older contracts, inconsistent policies or patchy records that haven't been reviewed for a while.
Now is the moment to audit your basics: wage and hour records, holiday calculations, contracts, policies, and how you handle concerns raised by staff about pay or treatment.
How Lansbury HR can help
We're already working with clients to audit their compliance ahead of likely FWA scrutiny. That includes reviewing contracts and policies, checking holiday pay calculations, tidying up record keeping systems, and making sure agency and umbrella worker arrangements stack up. Get in touch to discuss where your business stands.
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