‘Tackling non-compliance and exploitation cannot be achieved by any one organisation acting alone.’ That was the message in Birmingham as more than 100 delegates gathered for the first Fair Work Assembly, a meeting designed to help shape the priorities of the Fair Work Agency as it takes form. For readers outside Westminster, that matters because employment rights only mean something when they can be enforced in real workplaces: on industrial estates, in care settings, in hospitality and in offices far beyond London. Birmingham was the host city, but the questions raised there reach every region.

According to the government's summary of the day, the room brought together trade unions, employers, civil society groups and academics, alongside Fair Work Agency chief executive Lisa Pinney and advisory board chair Matthew Taylor. Panels and interactive sessions were used to gather views on where the agency should focus next. That broad mix matters. Workers want confidence that abuses will be taken seriously; good employers want a system that does not leave them undercut by firms willing to bend or break the rules. A fair labour market has to do both.

The discussions ranged from the employment rights agenda to newer risks in the labour market, with delegates also asked to reflect on lived experience of abuse and exploitation. Just as important were examples of what proper compliance looks like when businesses get it right. That makes this more than an administrative exercise. In regional economies, where small and medium-sized firms carry a lot of the load, clarity matters. Employers need to know what is expected of them, and workers need to know there is somewhere to turn when those expectations are ignored.

Taylor, who chairs the agency's advisory board, said one of the strongest messages from the day was a willingness to work together. In the government's account, he argued that a fairer labour market depends on businesses, unions, academics and voluntary groups pulling in the same direction. There is a practical point behind that. Enforcement bodies can set standards, but they rarely spot every problem first. Trade unions hear from staff, voluntary organisations see exploitation up close, and employers know where rules can be confusing or hard to apply. If the agency is serious about results, it will need that information flowing both ways.

Pinney struck a similar note. She said enforcement would remain central, but added that the Fair Work Agency also wants to be seen as an organisation that helps businesses ‘do the right thing’ and improve compliance across the labour market. For many employers, particularly outside the biggest city centres, that will be a welcome test of whether this body is practical as well as principled. Firms are more likely to respond well to clear guidance, consistent decisions and early support than to a system that only appears once something has already gone badly wrong.

Still, warm words are the easy part. Workers and employers alike will judge the agency by whether it can deal with real complaints, spot emerging risks and act quickly when rules are flouted. If a person is underpaid or pushed into exploitative conditions, process matters less than whether somebody takes responsibility and sorts it. The same goes for decent employers. When enforcement is patchy, responsible firms can end up competing against businesses that cut corners on pay, hours or basic treatment. That is why fair work enforcement is not only about protection; it is also about setting a level field for those trying to run things properly.

The Fair Work Assembly in Birmingham was presented by agency leaders as the start of a longer conversation, not the end of one. That is the right note, but the next steps matter more than the photographs and panel sessions. If the Fair Work Agency wants trust in the North, the Midlands and everywhere else, it will need to keep listening beyond one event and show how those conversations change its priorities. Birmingham has given it a public starting point. The harder task now is turning that promise into something workers can feel and employers can recognise in day-to-day business.