If you track staff location, log digital activity, or use software that scores performance automatically, a government consultation launched this summer could change how you’re allowed to do it. The consultation on “workplace monitoring technologies” is part of the wider Employment Rights Act reform agenda, and it closes on 30 September 2026, so this is a live window for any UK business that uses, or is thinking about using, this kind of software.

The scope is broader than most owners assume. Workplace monitoring technologies, as the consultation defines them, cover location tracking, biometric access systems, digital activity monitoring, and automated performance evaluation tools, the kind of dashboards built into many modern HR and productivity platforms by default, often switched on without anyone making an explicit decision to monitor staff. A Chartered Management Institute survey found a third of UK organisations now actively monitor employees’ digital activity, up from just a fifth in 2023, a jump driven largely by remote and hybrid working and the growing use of AI-powered tools that log activity as a side effect of doing their job.

What’s actually being decided

The consultation sets out three possible ways forward, and the option chosen will directly shape what compliance looks like for smaller employers. The lightest-touch option is non-statutory guidance, essentially a best-practice document with no legal teeth. The middle option is a statutory code of practice, which employment tribunals would be required to take into account when ruling on related disputes, giving it real practical weight without being a standalone law. The most demanding option is a new legal duty to consult and negotiate with trade unions or elected staff representatives before introducing any monitoring technology, a requirement that would apply regardless of company size unless specifically exempted.

For a small business already using time-tracking software, a call-monitoring tool, or an AI assistant that logs keystrokes and screen activity, the middle and heavier options would mean formal documentation and, potentially, staff consultation before rolling out anything new. That’s a materially different admin burden than what most SMEs currently budget for when they adopt this kind of software.

What to do before the window closes

Two things are worth doing now, not after the rules land. First, audit what you’re actually monitoring. Many SMEs pick up monitoring capability incidentally, a project management tool with built-in activity tracking, a helpdesk platform that logs every keystroke, an AI copilot that records screen activity to generate summaries, without ever treating it as a formal monitoring decision. Listing what’s switched on gives you a clear starting point regardless of which regulatory option wins.

Second, if the outcome matters to how you run your business, the consultation is open to responses until 30 September. Trade bodies will submit collective views, but individual SME input carries weight precisely because it’s rarer than submissions from large employers with dedicated HR and legal teams. If you’re planning to introduce AI-driven monitoring or productivity tools, tools like the kind BuildApps helps UK businesses adopt responsibly, this is also a sensible moment to build a “why we monitor, what we monitor, how we told staff” record now, since that’s likely to become a practical expectation whichever option the government chooses.

The takeaway

Don’t wait for the final rules to think about how you monitor staff. Audit what monitoring technology you already have running, even the kind bundled quietly into other software, and consider responding to the consultation before it closes on 30 September if the outcome would materially affect how your business operates. Whichever regulatory option is eventually chosen, businesses that can already show what they monitor, why, and how staff were told about it will have the easiest transition, so treat the consultation window as free time to get that groundwork done rather than an optional extra.