Policy paper

Fair Work Agency: enforcement policy statement

The regulatory tools and guiding structures utilised by the Fair Work Agency to enforce labour market legislation within its remit.

• From: Department for Business and Trade and Fair Work Agency
• Published: 7 April 2026
• Last updated: 26 August 2026
  Show all updates

  1. 26 August 2026

     Added content to explain the Fair Work Agency modern slavery remit. Added 'FWA has a role to protect vulnerable and exploited workers under sections 1 and 2 of the Modern Slavery Act. Updated it from 'FWA has a role to protect vulnerable and exploited workers covering certain aspects of the Modern Slavery Act.' Added 'Where serious labour exploitation does not meet the threshold for a modern slavery offence, the FWA may investigate and prosecute offences under the Fraud Act 2006 to tackle exploitative practices and protect vulnerable workers.'

  2. 19 May 2026

     The Fair Work Agency enforcement policy statement has been updated to more accurately reflect the work of the Employment Tribunal Financial Penalties Team.

  3. 7 April 2026

     First published.

Documents

Fair Work Agency enforcement statement

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Details

This document sets out:

• the FWA’s legislative remit for upholding compliance with labour market legislation across the UK
• the powers of the FWA and FWA enforcement officers
• the principles and codes of practice the FWA will have regard to in its operations
• the tools the FWA operates under its civil and criminal regimes, and its approach to prosecution
• how the FWA works with other bodies, including the Department of Business and Trade (DBT)