Employers

From 1 January 2027, all employees that have accumulated 6 months' continuous service will have the right to bring a claim for unfair dismissal, if they are dismissed or constructively dismissed. Counting back, an employee that starts on 1 July 2026 will therefore have 6 months' service by 1 January 2027. However, and very importantly, most employees will be entitled, by statute, to a minimum of 1 week's notice of termination, and this notice period will be factored into th

The rules on Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) will change from 6 April 2026. It’s important that you amend your policy to reflect the changes which are as follows: There will be no “waiting days” or “waiting period” as SSP will, from 6 April 2026, be payable from day one of absence. SSP will increase to the lower of £123.25 and 80% of the employee’s normal weekly earnings per week. There will be no requirement to earn above the lower earnings limit (LEL) to be eligible for SSP. A l

The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) is the professional body for human resources. CIPD has released a new report, alongside a series of case studies, assessing the state of flexible and hybrid working in the UK more than a year after the Employment Relations (Flexible Working) Act 2023 came into effect. The research captures both employer and employee perspectives, offering insight into how evolving working patterns are shaping organisational performan

The Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS)[1] has recently published the results of a YouGov poll of 1,015 senior business decision makers, which was conducted from 24 March to 2 April 2025. The research follows the introduction of the day-one right to request flexible working, and further changes are anticipated under the pending Employment Rights Bill, which will also require employers to reject requests only on ‘reasonable’ grounds and to provide detailed ex

The Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS) has issued new guidance on the Employment (Allocation of Tips) Act 2023, also known as the Tipping Act 2023, and its accompanying Code of Practice. This law regulates how employers must handle tips, service charges, and gratuities over which they have control or significant influence. Key points include: Employers are legally required to distribute tips fairly, without deductions (apart from taxes and National Insuranc

On 26th October, the new and much-heralded legislation, creating a positive duty for employers to take steps to prevent sexual harassment, came into force. Since our last newsletter on the subject, the Equality & Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has published its updated technical guidance on sexual harassment and a very helpful 8-step guide for employers (Guide). New sections 40A and 124A of the Equality Act 2010 have come into force. Employers are now under a duty to take re

The Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) has ruled that a claimant can pursue an indirect discrimination claim even if they do not share the same protected characteristic as the disadvantaged group, provided they experience the same disadvantage. This decision arose from a case involving British Airways, where new shift patterns were introduced for cabin crew. These changes were argued to have indirectly discriminated against two groups: non-British nationals who commuted to Heat