New employment rights: Guidance for businesses and workers

Changes to employments rights are now taking effect.

These changes are being introduced in stages. Some changes are already in place, and further changes are coming. Use guidance on this site to understand what applies to you or your organisation and when action may be required.

Whether you're an employer preparing for these changes or a worker wanting to understand your rights, you'll find guidance here.

This site will be updated as further measures are implemented.

Upcoming changes

The future dates remain subject to parliamentary processes and may change.

Changes by 31 August:

• Electronic and workplace balloting for statutory trade union ballots.

Changes from 1 October:

• Employment Tribunal time limits for bringing a claim to the Employment Tribunal will increase from 3 to 6 months.

Changes from 30 October:

Trade union reforms:

• Right of access into workplaces: independent trade unions will have a new legal right to access workplaces and engage with workers, either in-person or virtually.
• Duty for employers to inform workers of their right to join a trade union.
• Further changes to trade union law, including earlier union access to workers during the recognition process, rights for workplace representatives to paid time off and facility access, and protection from detriments for industrial action.

Harassment protections:

• Workplace sexual harassment: employers will be required to take ‘all reasonable steps’ to prevent sexual harassment of their employees.
• Third-party harassment: employers will be obliged not to permit the harassment of their employees by third parties.

Unfair dismissal protections will change from 1 January 2027, including a shorter qualifying period and the removal of the compensatory award cap.

Timeline for further changes

Our delivery timelineopens www.gov.uk in a new tab provides more information on when changes are happening.

Changes already introduced

February 2026

• Trade Union Measures: simpler requirements for trade unions, including in relation to industrial action.

April 2026

• Statutory Sick Pay: more employees qualify, with no earnings threshold and no three-day waiting period.
• Day-one family leave: employees are entitled to Paternity Leave and Unpaid Parental Leave from the first day in a new job.
• Bereaved Partner's Paternity Leave: new right to time off following the death of a child's mother or primary adopter.
• Collective redundancy protections: increase to the protective award for non-compliance.
• Whistleblowing protections: stronger protections for workers who report sexual harassment.
• Simpler enforcement through the Fair Work Agency: a new body to uphold workers' rights and support businesses with compliance.
• Holiday pay records: employers are required to keep adequate records to show they have complied with holiday pay and entitlement rules. These records need to be retained for 6 years from the date they were made.
• Action plans: employers with 250 or more employees are encouraged to publish the steps they are taking to reduce their gender pay gap and support employees experiencing menopause.
• Simplifying the trade union recognition process: simple-majority only required for recognition ballots and likely-majority test no longer required for recognition applications.

Explainer video: changes to unfair dismissal