Employment Rights Act 2025: Key workplace law changes taking effect from 30 October 2026

From 30 October 2026 the next phase of the Employment Rights Act 2025 reforms come into force, including;

• Employers’ obligation to take all reasonable steps (the current law states ‘reasonable steps’) to prevent sexual harassment of their employees.
• Employers will be liable for harassment of their employees from third parties (for example customers or clients) unless the employer has taken all reasonable steps to prevent it.
• Strengthen trade union rights – including unions right to request physical and digital access to workplaces and workers even where the union is not recognised, an updated Code of Practice on trade union recognition will be published, new rights for some trade union representatives around facilities and time off for duties and protection for workers against being treated less favourably by their employer when taking part in industrial action.

It has now been confirmed that the duty to inform workers of their right to join a trade union, which was expected to take effect in October 2026, will now take effect from 01 January 2027.

Need help preparing for the October 2026 employment law changes? Contact our employment law team for practical guidance on updating policies, training programmes and workplace procedures.

This article was written by Gabrielle Scriven.