Bectu calls for stronger protections to stop NDAs silencing workplace abuse

Bectu has urged the Government to strengthen proposed legislation on the use of non-disclosure agreements (NDAs), warning that current plans risk leaving thousands of freelance workers without protection.

As part of the Government’s Make Work Pay reforms, it has introduced changes to NDAs via the Employment Rights Act 2025. It is now consulting on the conditions which need to be met for an NDA to still be validly entered into in cases of harassment or discrimination (known as an ‘excepted agreement’).

The consultation also covers who workers that are covered by an excepted agreement can speak to about the harassment and discrimination, and considers expanding the types of individuals the legislation applies to beyond employees and workers (such as including some self-employed individuals).

Use of NDAs rife in creative industries

In its response to the consultation on the misuse of NDAs, the union argues that confidentiality clauses have become deeply embedded across the creative industries and are too often used to prevent workers from speaking out about harassment, discrimination and abuse.

In the creative industries, freelancers make up a significant proportion of the workforce and are often among the most exposed to harassment and discrimination, yet the least protected. Many are afraid to report their experiences for fear of damaging their careers, and while mostly used to prevent leaks of confidential information, the normalisation of NDA use can feed a culture of silence. In Bectu’s Big Survey,  59% of freelancers and 83% of agency workers had signed NDAs.

New protections must extend to freelancers

Bectu is calling on the Government to ensure that any new legal protections explicitly cover freelancers as well as contractors, self-employed workers, interns and trainees. The union warns that excluding non-standard workers is critical in industries such as film and TV, where freelance employment is the norm.

The submission also argues that confidentiality clauses should only ever be used where this reflects the informed choice of the worker. Employers should not be able to pressure workers into signing confidentiality agreements, and settlement payments should not be conditional on remaining silent.

Instead, NDAs should exist to protect victims who wish to keep their experiences private, rather than shielding employers or perpetrators from scrutiny. Workers should retain meaningful control over whether, when and how they share their experiences.

Alongside legal reform, Bectu is calling for stronger safeguards to ensure workers can make informed decisions before signing agreements containing confidentiality clauses. This includes access to independent legal advice, funded by employers, and greater oversight of organisations making repeated use of NDAs.

Read Bectu’s submission to the Consultation on the misuse of NDA’s