What Are Strikes? UK Employer Guide

If you’re running a small business or startup, the idea of a strike can feel like one of those “big company” problems that won’t hit you.

In reality, strikes (and other forms of industrial action) can affect businesses of any size - especially if you rely on a small team, operate on tight timelines, or have customer-facing commitments that can’t easily pause.

This guide explains what strikes are in practical terms for UK employers, when they may be lawful (and “protected”), what your options are, and how to protect your business without turning a workplace dispute into a long-term culture problem.

What Are Strikes (And What Counts As Industrial Action)?

So, what are strikes?

A strike is when workers collectively stop working (fully or partially) as a way to put pressure on their employer during a dispute - usually about pay, hours, workplace conditions, job security, or organisational change.

In UK law, a strike is one type of industrial action. Industrial action can also include other coordinated steps short of a full walkout, such as:

• Work-to-rule (employees do only what their contract strictly requires, nothing more)
• Overtime bans (refusing overtime that people might usually do)
• Refusing certain duties (for example, refusing to cover particular shifts)
• Go-slow (deliberately reducing the pace of work)

From a small business perspective, even “partial” action like an overtime ban can have a big impact - especially if your operations depend on flexibility, late nights, or peak-time coverage.

Strikes Usually Happen In The Context Of A Trade Dispute

Most lawful strike action happens in the context of a trade dispute between workers (often represented by a trade union) and an employer.

While you can have individual disputes (like a grievance), strikes are generally a collective response - typically involving a recognised union or a union organising the action even if it’s not formally recognised.

Why This Matters For Employers

If a strike is organised lawfully, the law gives participants and unions certain protections. If it isn’t, there may be more options available to you as an employer (including potentially stopping action through the courts) - but you still need to handle the situation carefully to avoid escalating the dispute or triggering legal claims.

When Is A Strike Lawful In The UK?

In the UK, striking isn’t simply “legal” or “illegal” in a blanket way. Instead, there’s a legal framework that affects whether industrial action is protected (and whether a union and employees have certain protections when taking it).

The main legislation in this area is the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 (TULRCA).

In simple terms, strike action is more likely to be lawful (and protected) if:

• It relates to a genuine trade dispute (for example, pay, hours, working conditions)
• It is organised by a trade union and follows the required legal process (including a properly run ballot and meeting the relevant voting thresholds)
• The employer receives the required notice of industrial action (including details of when action is intended to take place)

Ballots And Notice: The Process Employers Should Expect

When a union organises industrial action, there are usually key steps you’ll see (and need to respond to) such as:

• Notification that a ballot is going to happen
• Ballot results confirming support for action (subject to legal thresholds and rules, including turnout requirements)
• Notice of action telling you when action will take place (often at least 14 days, unless a shorter period is agreed)

As a small business, you don’t need to memorise every technical rule - but you do need to recognise when you should get advice quickly, because deadlines and communications matter, and unions can lose legal protections if the process is defective.

Peaceful Picketing (And Where The Line Is)

Strikes often come with picketing (employees protesting at or near the workplace to encourage others not to cross the picket line).

Peaceful picketing is generally allowed, and there’s also a Code of Practice that’s often used as a benchmark for what “reasonable” looks like. However, behaviour that becomes intimidating, obstructive, or threatening can raise legal issues. It’s also worth remembering you still owe duties around health and safety - so your site access, fire exits, and customer safety should remain protected.

If you have CCTV in place, be careful: workplace monitoring comes with privacy obligations, so it’s sensible to have clear rules in writing and only use monitoring proportionately. A clear Workplace Policy can help you set expectations early.

What Can Employers Do During A Strike (And What Should You Avoid)?

When industrial action starts (or is threatened), employers often want a “one page” list of what they can do.

The tricky part is that the best approach depends on whether action is likely to be protected, the terms of your contracts, and how you manage the employee relations side without creating bigger risks.

Pay: Do You Have To Pay Employees Who Are Striking?

Generally, if an employee is taking strike action and is not working, you do not have to pay them for the time they are on strike.

However, you should handle deductions carefully and consistently. If you have partial performance (for example, a work-to-rule scenario), the position can get more complicated and it’s worth getting advice before making deductions that could trigger unlawful deduction of wages arguments.

This is also why it’s important that your Employment Contract is clear on hours, duties, and pay structure - unclear drafting tends to cause disputes at exactly the wrong time.

Can You Bring In Temporary Cover Or Reallocate Work?

Many small businesses consider short-term cover, reallocating work, or using contractors to maintain critical operations.

In principle, you can explore operational contingency measures - but you should think through:

• whether you’re creating safety risks by asking untrained staff to cover specialist tasks
• whether changes to duties breach existing agreements or job descriptions
• how you communicate changes so they don’t look like retaliation

It’s also important to know that, in the UK, employment businesses are generally prohibited from supplying agency workers to cover the duties of employees taking part in lawful industrial action (or to cover the duties of other workers who are covering strikers). This is a common “quick fix” that can create legal issues if handled incorrectly.

Where you do need short-term help (for example, genuine non-strike cover that doesn’t breach the rules), a properly written contractor agreement can reduce disputes about deliverables, confidentiality, and liability.

Can You Discipline Or Dismiss Employees For Striking?

This is one of the biggest risk areas for employers.

Depending on the circumstances, dismissing employees for taking part in official and protected industrial action can expose you to serious legal risk, including unfair dismissal claims. In particular, there are time-limited protections around dismissal for taking part in protected industrial action (often discussed in terms of the first 12 weeks of action), and the position after that can depend on what steps have been taken to try to resolve the dispute.

Even if you think the action is not protected (for example, because the ballot/notice process wasn’t followed), reacting quickly (or emotionally) is rarely the best move. If you believe misconduct has occurred during picketing or workplace disruption, focus on evidence and process - not assumptions.

In practice, that often means using a structured investigation approach before taking any disciplinary steps. A proper process matters, especially if you later need to justify your decision. If you’re unsure what “good process” looks like, having a workplace framework (for example, in a staff handbook) is a strong starting point - and a Staff Handbook can help set out disciplinary rules, standards of behaviour, and dispute procedures.

Where misconduct is serious (for example, violence, threats, or deliberate damage), you may also need to consider whether it falls into a gross misconduct category - but it’s crucial not to jump to conclusions. A structured checklist approach can help you stay consistent and fair, such as the steps in a Gross Misconduct response.

Don’t Forget Reputation And Customer Commitments

Startups and small businesses live and die by reputation.

Even if you’re legally “in the right”, how you handle a strike can affect:

• employee morale and retention
• your ability to hire in future
• customer trust (especially if service levels drop)
• public perception, if anything spills onto social media

That’s why it’s often worth treating strike response as both a legal issue and a business continuity / communications issue.

How To Prepare For Strike Action As A Small Business (A Practical Checklist)

If you’re a founder or small business owner, you usually don’t have the luxury of an in-house HR team. The good news is: you can still set up practical protections from day one.

1) Get Your Legal Foundations In Place Early

Many disputes escalate because expectations were never properly documented.

At a minimum, you should make sure you have:

• clear Employment Contract terms (hours, pay, duties, overtime expectations, notice requirements)
• workplace standards and procedures in writing (usually through a Staff Handbook)
• a consistent approach to performance issues (so staff don’t feel that strike threats are the only way to be heard)

This isn’t about “lawyering up” to fight your team - it’s about reducing uncertainty and making sure everyone understands the rules before conflict happens.

2) Spot The Early Warning Signs

Strikes rarely come out of nowhere. Often, you’ll see signs like:

• repeated complaints about pay, workload, or scheduling
• higher absence, lateness, or resignations
• heated team messages or coordination among staff about refusing shifts
• an uptick in formal grievances

When those signs appear, it’s often better to address the underlying issue early rather than waiting until it becomes “all or nothing”.

3) Use A Fair Grievance Process (And Document It)

If employees feel they can raise issues safely and be heard, you may prevent escalation.

A fair grievance process usually includes:

• listening without defensiveness
• documenting concerns and meetings
• investigating key allegations where needed
• providing an outcome and (where appropriate) an appeal route

If you need a reference point for how these meetings can go wrong (and how to keep them on track), it’s worth being mindful of common pitfalls discussed in Grievance Meetings guidance.

4) Create A Business Continuity Plan

Even where relationships are good, you should plan for disruption. This is especially important if your business provides time-sensitive services (deliveries, bookings, customer support, regulated services).

Your plan might cover:

• which tasks are mission-critical vs can pause
• which managers can cover essential duties
• how you will communicate with customers if service levels drop
• how to protect data, premises, and equipment if access is disrupted

Small steps here can significantly reduce panic if action occurs.

What To Do During A Strike: Communication, Safety, And Dispute Resolution

If industrial action is underway (or imminent), the employers who cope best are usually the ones who stay calm, communicate clearly, and keep decisions consistent.

Keep Communications Clear And Neutral

You’ll usually want to communicate with:

• employees who are striking
• employees who are not striking
• customers and suppliers (where service is affected)

A good rule of thumb is to communicate facts, not threats. For example:

• confirming what hours are affected
• confirming how pay will be handled for strike time
• setting expectations for safety and conduct at the workplace

Be careful about statements that could be interpreted as punishing or discouraging lawful participation, especially if a union is involved.

Keep The Workplace Safe

Even if employees are not working, your business still has legal obligations around health and safety.

Think about:

• site access and emergency exits
• customer safety if you trade from premises
• lone working risks if only a small number of staff attend
• any risks associated with heightened emotions or conflict

Investigate Specific Incidents Properly

If something happens during industrial action (for example, damage, harassment, threats, or serious disruption), try not to treat “the strike” as the issue. Focus on the specific incident.

That usually means:

• collecting evidence fairly (messages, CCTV where appropriate, witness accounts)
• inviting employees to explain their version
• keeping notes and records
• only then deciding whether disciplinary action is appropriate

If you need a process benchmark, it can be helpful to follow structured steps like those set out in Workplace Investigations guidance.

After A Strike: How To Get Your Business Back On Track

Once industrial action ends (even temporarily), there’s usually still a dispute underneath.

From a business perspective, this is the moment to rebuild stability - not just reopen the doors and hope for the best.

Don’t Rush Straight Into “Clean-Up” Discipline

It can be tempting to start formal action against participants once operations resume.

But if you move too aggressively, you risk:

• reigniting conflict and triggering further action
• increasing employee turnover (and recruitment costs)
• creating legal risk if actions are linked to protected industrial action

If there were genuine misconduct issues, address them carefully and consistently, and only after you’ve documented the facts and followed your own policies.

Review The Root Cause (And Fix What You Can)

For startups, disputes often come from rapid growth pressures - pay structures that haven’t kept up, unclear roles, inconsistent scheduling, or last-minute operational changes.

After a strike (or near-strike), it’s worth reviewing:

• whether your contracts reflect what people actually do day-to-day
• whether managers need training on handling grievances and conflict
• whether workplace policies are clear, accessible, and up to date
• whether you need to consult employees more formally for changes

Addressing these issues early can reduce the likelihood of repeat disputes and helps you build a business that can scale without constant people problems.

Update Your Documentation For Next Time

Even well-managed businesses can face industrial relations issues. The goal is to be better prepared next time.

Common “post-strike” legal housekeeping includes updating your:

• Employment Contract templates for clarity around duties, overtime, and variations
• Staff Handbook for grievance, disciplinary, and conduct rules
• Workplace Policy approach around communications, conduct, and workplace behaviour standards

This is also a good time to get tailored advice, because what’s “reasonable” can depend heavily on your sector, workforce, and working patterns - and because if you believe proposed action is unlawful, you may have time-sensitive options (including seeking an injunction) that depend on acting quickly.

Key Takeaways

• What are strikes? Strikes are a type of industrial action where workers collectively stop work (or reduce work) to pressure an employer during a dispute, often about pay or conditions.
• In the UK, strike action may be lawful and protected if it follows the rules under TULRCA, including union processes like ballots, voting thresholds, and notice requirements.
• Employers usually do not have to pay employees for time spent striking, but wage deductions should be handled carefully and consistently.
• Dismissing or disciplining staff connected to industrial action can be high-risk - protections can be time-limited and fact-sensitive, so focus on facts, process, and fairness, especially where action may be protected.
• Small businesses should prepare by having strong legal foundations (contracts and policies), responding early to grievances, and maintaining a business continuity plan.
• After a strike, focus on stabilising operations, resolving the underlying dispute, and tightening workplace documentation to reduce the risk of repeat issues.

If you’d like help reviewing your contracts and policies or managing a workplace dispute in a practical, legally compliant way, you can reach us at 08081347754 or team@sprintlaw.co.uk for a free, no-obligations chat.