What’s up EqualityWorx fam? Non Disclosure Agreements (NDAs) have loomed over workplaces for decades. They started as a way to keep trade secrets under wraps, but somewhere along the line, they became the ultimate corporate gag order. From tech to telly, NDAs have been used to silence workers, hush up harassment, and bury discrimination complaints. Now, the UK’s Labour government is ripping up the old playbook, and it’s a game-changer.
Labour’s New Law: No More Gag Orders on Abuse
This summer, Labour made good on a #MeToo-era promise: NDAs can no longer be used to silence people who experience or witness harassment or discrimination at work. Under the new Employment Rights Bill, any confidentiality or non-disparagement clause that tries to keep victims or witnesses quiet about abuse is void. If you’ve been harassed, bullied, or worse, your boss can’t buy your silence with a payout and a legal threat.
Angela Rayner, Deputy Prime Minister, called it “a new era of workplace rights.” Campaigners like Zelda Perkins – who famously broke her NDA to expose Harvey Weinstein, are hailing it as a landmark for worker power and dignity. To understand just how big this shift is, it helps to look at how NDAs ended up here in the first place.
NDAs: From Trade Secrets to Toxic Silencing
NDAs weren’t always about hiding bad behaviour. They were invented to stop employees from running off with their core innovation – think Coca-Cola’s formula or the code behind your favourite app. But over the years, NDAs morphed into a tool for sweeping workplace abuse under the rug. If you spoke up, you risked being sued. If you stayed quiet, the cycle continued.
The #MeToo movement blew the lid off this culture of silence. High-profile cases – from Hollywood to the NHS – showed how NDAs were weaponised to protect abusers and keep victims in the shadows. Suddenly, what was meant to be about business became a way to keep power in the hands of the few.
The New Rules: What Changes, What Stays
Here’s what Labour’s new law means:
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NDAs can’t silence victims or witnesses of harassment or discrimination. If you want to speak out, you can.
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Employers can’t use NDAs to cover up misconduct, even if the NDA was signed before the new law kicks in.
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NDAs are still allowed for protecting intellectual property or commercially sensitive info. So if you’re leaving to join a rival, you still can’t spill the secret sauce.
That last point matters. Some business leaders argue that NDAs still have a place, especially in sectors where innovation is everything and staff could jump to a competitor overnight. The law keeps this protection in place, balancing business needs with basic rights.
What About Ireland?
But this isn’t just a UK story. Ireland’s been having its own reckoning with NDAs – and it’s heating up fast. For years, NDAs have been standard in Irish workplaces, supposedly to protect business secrets. But just like in the UK, they’ve also been used to silence people who’ve faced discrimination, harassment, or worse. That culture of hush-hush is finally being challenged.
Last year, Ireland passed the Maternity Protection, Employment Equality and Preservation of Certain Records Act 2024, which essentially voids any NDA that tries to gag workers about discrimination, harassment, or sexual harassment. Employers can’t force you to stay silent about abuse – unless very specific, narrow criteria are met. The law is clear: you can’t be pressured into silence just to save a company’s reputation.
This shift didn’t come out of nowhere. Activists, second-gen campaigners, and politicians like Senator Lynn Ruane have been pushing for years to end the “gagging effect” of NDAs – especially for those from marginalised backgrounds who’ve historically been told to keep their heads down. The message is finally getting through: Ireland won’t stand for silence in the face of injustice.
For Gen Z and Second-Gen: No More Keeping Your Head Down
For Irish Gen Z and second-gen, this is about more than legal fine print. It’s about flipping the script on a culture that’s kept too many stories in the shadows. If you’re a young worker, especially from a migrant background, you know how easy it is to feel isolated or powerless when something goes wrong at work. NDAs made that worse, locking people into silence and letting toxic workplaces off the hook.
Now, with the new law, the power dynamic is shifting. You have the right to speak up, seek support, and demand accountability – without worrying about being sued or blacklisted. It’s a massive win for anyone who’s ever felt like the system was rigged to protect the powerful, not the people.
The New Irish Workplace: Transparency Over Silence
So, what’s next? Irish workplaces are being forced to get real about culture, not just compliance. HR teams can’t just throw an NDA at a problem and hope it goes away. Prevention, transparency, and real support for those who speak out are the new standard. For Gen Z and second-gen, that means safer, fairer workplaces – and a shot at real change, not just lip service.
Of course, NDAs still have a place for protecting genuine commercial secrets – if you’re moving to a rival, you can’t take proprietary knowledge. But when it comes to abuse or discrimination, the era of forced silence is over. This isn’t just about contracts – it’s about culture. Gen Z and second-gen workers are making it clear: the days of silence are over. The future is transparent, inclusive, and unapologetically loud.
If you’ve got a story about NDAs or workplace rights in Ireland, drop your voice at equalityworx.com/submit or tag #EqualityWorxVibe. The hush-hush days are done – let’s make Ireland’s workplaces louder, fairer, and truly open to all.
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