What is changing?

From 1 October 2026, the time limit for bringing Employment Tribunal claims will increase from three months to six months. This will give employees more time to bring claims arising from workplace incidents and is likely to extend the period during which employers face potential exposure following dismissals, grievances and other workplace disputes.

How employers can prepare

Employers should consider the practical impact of the longer limitation period.

• Investigation procedures should be strengthened and managers and other relevant stakeholders should receive training on the importance of keeping clear, consistent and contemporaneous records of workplace incidents to ensure that relevant events can still be reconstructed accurately several months after they occur. For example, obtaining witness accounts as soon as possible following an incident, preserving relevant emails and messages, securing any available CCTV footage before it is deleted, and preparing detailed investigation records that clearly document findings and decision-making.
• Document retention periods should be extended so that relevant records are retained for at least six months after any workplace incident, reflecting the longer period in which claims may be brought.
• Employers should consider how the extended limitation period affects their overall approach to dispute resolution. For example, the longer period in which claims may be brought may influence decisions around the timing of settlement offers, the use of mediation, and the ongoing management of employment disputes in general, as potential exposure may persist for longer after the underlying events. Employers may therefore wish to take a more proactive approach to identifying and resolving potential claims, as disputes that are left unresolved, or addressed only informally, are now less likely to become time-barred.

How employers can prepare

Employers should consider whether their existing preventative measures are sufficient to meet this enhanced duty to prevent sexual harassment.

• Employers should refresh risk assessments across all sites and roles, including stadiums, training grounds and event venues, to identify where sexual harassment risks may arise.
• Training should be tailored to the specific roles and working environments in which employees operate, rather than relying solely on generic sexual harassment modules. For example, office-based staff may require different training from football coaches who work directly with players and may be present in changing-room environments where sexual harassment risks are potentially heightened.
• Reporting channels should be reviewed and, where appropriate, expanded so that employees have access to multiple accessible options for raising concerns. This should include both digital reporting mechanisms, such as channels embedded within online employee workspaces, and clearly identified in-person reporting routes, including designated individuals such as HR ambassadors or other trained representatives who sit outside an employee’s direct management chain. Anonymous reporting options should also be available across these reporting channels to help remove barriers to reporting.

B: New duty to prevent third-party harassment

What is changing?

• At present, employers are not generally directly liable where an employee is harassed by a third party, such as a customer, supplier, contractor or visitor in the workplace.
• From 30 October 2026, employers will be directly liable where an employee is harassed by a third party in the course of employment and the employer has failed to take all reasonable steps to prevent that harassment.
• This duty is not limited to sexual harassment; it also covers harassment relating to all relevant protected characteristics under the Equality Act 2010, including age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation and so on. It will therefore require employers to consider wider harassment risks arising from interactions with third parties.

How employers can prepare

Employers should consider how third-party risks arise in practice and what preventative steps are appropriate.

• Contracts with all third parties including suppliers, contractors and event partners should be reviewed and updated to include appropriate anti-harassment obligations and behavioural standards. For example, requiring third-party contractors to comply with the employer’s dignity at work and anti-harassment policies and providing contractual rights to remove individuals who breach those standards from its site or events it manages.
• Clear complaints and escalation protocols should be established specifically for third-party harassment incidents, and reporting and investigation procedures available to employees should expressly cover harassment perpetrated by third parties. Training should include practical third-party harassment scenarios so that staff know how to recognise and respond to inappropriate conduct by third parties, raise concerns where there is a risk of harassment occurring, and report and escalate incidents through the appropriate channels.
• Employers should consider using signage in workplaces and at venues to set clear behavioural expectations for visitors, fans and other third parties. For example, displaying codes of conduct at stadium entrances, reception areas, training facilities and event spaces, making clear that discriminatory, abusive or harassing behaviour towards staff will not be tolerated and may result in e.g. removal from the venue.
• Employers should review staffing, supervision and security arrangements in higher-risk environments. For example, providing additional stewarding or security presence at high-profile matches, reducing alcohol consumption at corporate events, ensuring employees are not required to meet unknown third parties alone, and implementing appropriate supervision systems for staff working late, travelling, or attending external events.

What is changing?

From 30 October 2026:

• Trade unions will gain new statutory rights of access to workplaces, including both physical workplaces and digital working environments.
• Reforms to recognition/derecognition processes and new rights for union equality representatives will be introduced, including paid time off for equality-related activities.
• Protection for workers taking industrial action against detrimental treatment will be extended.

It was also envisaged that, from 30 October 2026, employers would be required to provide employees with a written statement informing them of their right to join a trade union. However, following the government’s response to a consultation on the subject on 25 September 2026, this duty is now intended to come into force in January 2027.

How employers can prepare

Employers should consider how these reforms may affect employee onboarding, employee communications and relations with unions.

• Employers should prepare for union access requests, including requests relating to both physical premises and digital working environments, and should designate appropriate internal contacts to manage those requests.
• Employee engagement strategies should be reviewed so that employers are prepared to manage increased union activity, particularly in large, dispersed or high-profile organisations. For example, reviewing staff forums, surveys, committees and workplace communication channels to ensure employee concerns are identified and addressed at an early stage. Employers may also wish to assess whether particular business areas or branch locations are more likely to experience increased trade union activity.