We've been working with Centre for London and funded partners from across the workers' rights movement to map out what needs to be true for the Fair Work Agency to succeed.
The United Kingdom is at a critical juncture in the protection of workers’ rights. With the Government set to establish a new single enforcement body - the Fair Work Agency (FWA) - now is the time to design a system that meaningfully tackles labour exploitation and promotes good work for all, especially for groups like migrant workers who are most often failed by the current system.
In July 2025, the Centre for London and Trust for London brought together a group of expert stakeholders across policy, enforcement, migrant rights, social care and employment law to map out what needs to be true for the FWA to succeed.
A powerful consensus emerged from the workshop, highlighting that to succeed the FWA should embed the following core principles in it's design and implementation. To succeed, the FWA must:
- Be designed around a foundational commitment of the protection of workers’ rights and its success measured against the delivery of this commitment.
- Be sufficiently resourced and effective to be proactive and act as both a beacon of good employment and a meaningful deterrent against poor employment practices.
- Be highly visible, with a strong, distinctive and respected brand.
- Be designed with all users in mind, recognising that the most marginalised face additional barriers to access to justice while also offering employers relevant, constructive and collaborative compliance guidance.
- Be informed by continuous multi-stakeholder engagement underpinned by formal and ongoing engagement with civil society organisations.
- Provide a safe and secure mechanism for migrant workers to report abuse without fear of immigration enforcement
The Employment Rights Bill is expected to receive Royal Assent in Autumn 2025, with the FWA operational by April 2026. We urge the Government to formally commit to embedding these principles into the design and implementation of the FWA and recommend they:
- Initiate a co-design process with civil society organisations and worker and employer representatives to shape the FWA’s engagement structures, branding, and user experience.
- Establish a formal, cross-departmental working group with the Home Office to immediately begin designing the operational and data-sharing protocols required for a secure reporting mechanism for migrant workers.
Read the briefing in full now, to delve in depth into each of the principles:
https://centreforlondon.org/publication/fair-work-agency-briefing/.