Niall Mackenzie, Acas Chief Executive
Niall Mackenzie joined Acas in May 2025 from the Department for Business and Trade (DBT), where he was His Majesty's Trade Commissioner for North America, based at the British Consulate General in New York City.
A year ago, I joined Acas at a moment of significant change. The Employment Rights Bill was passing through Parliament, and questions about productivity, fairness and resilience in the labour market were firmly in the public eye. The Bill is now law, and many of its provisions are in force, with the rest following in the months ahead.
As Chief Executive of Acas, an impartial and independent public body, my focus is clear: helping employers and workers understand their rights and responsibilities under the law, and supporting good employment relationships. What has become unmistakable over the past year is that demand for trusted, neutral advice has never been higher. Every day I see the professionalism and dedication of Acas colleagues meeting that rising need, while continuing to maintain our high quality service.
Workplace conflict is rising
Pressures at work did not begin with the new legislation, and they will not end with it. Over the past year, formal individual disputes coming to Acas have increased by over a quarter. But those cases represent only a small proportion of the conflict people experience at work. Our 2025 research into how prevalent individual conflict is at work indicates 44% of people faced conflict in the previous 12 months – while only 2% of workers entered into the Acas system.
Conflict brings real human costs, including stress and anxiety, and it also affects the wider economy. Our most recent research into estimating the costs of workplace conflict, carried out before the pandemic, showed workplace conflict costing £28.5 billion a year. With changes in how and where we work since then, we are updating our research to understand today's picture and ensure our support is grounded in current reality.
A strategy grounded in clarity and inclusion
Last year we published our Acas strategy for 2025 to 2030, focused on Preventing, Managing and Resolving workplace conflict. Accessibility and inclusion run through everything we do. We are redesigning services, tools and guidance so that people can find what they need easily and use it with confidence, whatever their role or background.
Supporting a changing world of work
We are helping employers prepare for the phased introduction of the Employment Rights Act. Alongside regularly updated guidance, our training and webinars reached hundreds of thousands of people, helping businesses adapt and workers understand what the changes mean in practice.
At the same time, we are modernising how we work. Rising demand means we must be faster, simpler and more efficient. We are reviewing processes, upgrading systems and testing how digital and AI‑enabled tools can reduce time spent on straightforward queries. This frees our expert practitioners to focus on complex and high‑impact cases.
Impact and looking ahead
Each year, thousands of people benefit from Acas services, whether through helpline advice, conciliation, training or guidance. Feedback consistently highlights trust in our impartiality and the value of our expertise. Where frustration exists, it is most often about access and delays – and that is a challenge we are tackling directly.
My priorities remain clear:
- supporting the smooth implementation of employment law
- improving our service delivery
- strengthening workplace relationships across Britain
The world of work will continue to change, but Acas's purpose does not. We are here to make working life better for everyone – fairly, constructively and with confidence.
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