24 Mar ACAS Guidance on Non-disclosure Agreements
ACAS Guidance for employers and workers on use of Non-disclosure Agreements (NDAs)
The ACAS Guidance on non-disclosure agreements has been created to help employers and workers understand what NDAs are, how to appropriately use them and how to prevent their misuse.
The Guidance is comprehensive and written in plain English. The circumstances that NDAs should not be used for, which is expanded upon in the Guidance include:
- To intimidate or silence victims of sexual harassment.
- To silence whistleblowers.
- To deter people from reporting acts of misconduct or serious regulatory breaches.
The Guidance explains clearly when and how NDAs might be used by employers and advises employers to consider using NDAs on a case-by-case basis but first determine whether they are truly needed. It also advises employers to use plain English that leaves no room for ambiguity and it encourages employers to try and resolve workplace issues using fair procedures instead of NDAs.
It is our view that workers should always question the reasons for being asked to sign NDAs.
The Guidance can be viewed here.