UK Employment Law Advice: Rights, Contracts & Disputes (2026)

At a glance

• Unfair dismissal qualifying period today: 2 years' continuous service under section 108 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 — some dismissals (whistleblowing, pregnancy, asserting a statutory right, discrimination) are automatically unfair from day one regardless of service.
• Not yet in force — from 1 January 2027: the qualifying period falls to 6 months and the compensatory award cap is removed, under the Employment Rights Act 2025. It was never a genuine "day one" right — that proposal was dropped before the Act was passed.
• Tribunal time limit today: most claims, including unfair dismissal and discrimination, must reach the tribunal within 3 months less one day of the event, though contacting Acas pauses the clock.
• Not yet in force: the general tribunal time limit is expected to extend to 6 months from 1 October 2026, for events happening on or after that date.
• Acas early conciliation: a legal precondition for most claims; the window was extended from 6 to 12 weeks from 1 December 2025.
• Statutory notice: the longer of your contract and the statutory minimum — one week per complete year of service, up to 12 weeks, under section 86 of the Employment Rights Act 1996.
• Discrimination: the Equality Act 2010 covers nine protected characteristics with no minimum service requirement; from October 2026 employers face a strengthened duty to prevent sexual harassment, including by third parties.
• Redundancy and unfair dismissal award limits (dismissals from 6 April 2026): a week's pay for statutory purposes is capped at £751, giving a maximum basic award / statutory redundancy payment of £22,530; the unfair dismissal compensatory award is capped at £123,543 or 52 weeks' gross pay, whichever is lower — always check current figures on gov.uk, since these rise every April.
• National Minimum/Living Wage: rates rose on 1 April 2026 — check the current age-banded figures on gov.uk before relying on any specific rate.

Who does employment law protect, and how?

Employment law in England and Wales draws on several sources: the Employment Rights Act 1996, the Equality Act 2010, the Working Time Regulations 1998, the National Minimum Wage Act 1998, and — since December 2025 — the Employment Rights Act 2025, which is the biggest single piece of employment reform in a generation and is being introduced in stages through to 2027. Acas codes of practice sit on top of the statutes; tribunals take them into account when deciding whether an employer behaved reasonably, even though the codes are not themselves law.

The law recognises three main categories of working person: employees, workers and the genuinely self-employed. Which category you fall into decides which rights you can rely on, from paid holiday and the minimum wage through to unfair dismissal protection and a written statement of particulars. Job titles and contract labels are not decisive — tribunals look at the reality of the relationship, including control, mutuality of obligation and personal service. Getting this classification right is usually the first real question in any dispute, and it is the same test the Supreme Court applied in Uber BV v Aslam when it found drivers labelled as self-employed contractors were in fact workers.

This guide covers England and Wales. Scotland and Northern Ireland have broadly similar frameworks, but some procedural detail and time limits differ.

Unfair dismissal: the current rules — and what's changing

An employee generally needs two years of continuous service to bring an "ordinary" unfair dismissal claim, under section 108 of the Employment Rights Act 1996. Dismissals connected to a small set of protected reasons — pregnancy and family leave, whistleblowing, trade union membership, asserting a statutory right, or discrimination on a protected characteristic — are treated as automatically unfair and require no minimum service at all. If your dismissal touches on any of these, the qualifying-period question does not apply, but the time limit still runs from the date of dismissal, so do not wait to check.

This is changing, but not yet. Section 25 of, and Schedule 3 to, the Employment Rights Act 2025 reduces the qualifying period for ordinary unfair dismissal from two years to six months. An early version of the Bill proposed scrapping the qualifying period altogether — the "day one right" headline many people still remember — but that did not survive the Bill's passage through Parliament, and the version enacted uses six months instead. Based on the commencement regulations made so far, this change takes effect for dismissals with an effective date of termination on or after 1 January 2027. Anyone already employed by around 1 July 2026 will typically have banked the necessary six months' service by the time the change lands, so a large number of employees will gain protection on that date without anything further needing to happen. Until then, the existing two-year rule governs dismissals happening now — do not assume the newer, shorter qualifying period already applies.

The same reform removes the statutory cap on the compensatory award for unfair dismissal from 1 January 2027. Today, for dismissals on or after 6 April 2026, that cap sits at £123,543 or 52 weeks' gross pay, whichever is lower, alongside a maximum basic award of £22,530, under the Employment Rights (Increase of Limits) Order 2026 — check gov.uk for the current figures, since both change every April. For a full walkthrough of remedies, time limits and the Acas process, see our guide on employment tribunals and making a claim to an employment tribunal. If you think your own dismissal was unfair, our detailed guide on understanding unfair dismissal covers the grounds and process in depth; if the issue is that you were dismissed without proper notice rather than for an unfair reason, see wrongful dismissal, which is a related but legally distinct claim.

Your contract, and what your employer can and can't change

Contractual terms can only be varied by agreement, unless the contract itself contains a clear and reasonable flexibility clause that genuinely covers the change being made. If an employer tries to impose a change unilaterally — a pay cut, a relocation, reduced hours — you generally have several options: work under protest while reserving your rights, raise a grievance, claim breach of contract, or in serious cases resign and claim constructive dismissal. Each route carries different risks and time pressures, so it is worth understanding the options before acting. Our guide on navigating your employment contract sets out what a compliant contract should contain and where employers most often overreach.

Fire and rehire — dismissing staff and re-engaging them on worse terms to force through a change — remains legally possible today, but the position tightens sharply from 1 January 2027, when the Employment Rights Act 2025 makes this automatically unfair dismissal where it affects a "restricted variation" such as pay, total contracted hours, pension contributions, leave entitlement or certain shift patterns. A narrow exception applies only where the employer can show genuine severe financial difficulty threatening the business as a going concern, that the change was needed to address it, and that no reasonable alternative existed. Until that date, the current, more permissive legal position continues to apply.

Discrimination at work

The Equality Act 2010 protects people from unfavourable treatment linked to nine protected characteristics: age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, and sexual orientation. Discrimination can be direct, indirect, by association or by perception, and the Act separately covers harassment and victimisation. Unlike unfair dismissal, there is no minimum service requirement — protection starts from the point you apply for a job, not from your first day of work.

From October 2026, employers face a strengthened legal duty to take all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment of their staff, extending to harassment by third parties such as customers or clients, not just colleagues. If you believe you have experienced discrimination or harassment, the time limit to bring a claim is the same 3-months-less-a-day rule described below, and specialist guides cover specific characteristics in more depth — see disability discrimination tribunal claims and race discrimination and tribunal claims.

Notice, dismissal and settlement agreements

Your notice entitlement is the longer of your contractual notice and the statutory minimum set out in section 86 of the Employment Rights Act 1996: one week after one month of service, rising by one week for each complete year worked, up to a maximum of twelve weeks after twelve years. Notice can be worked, placed on garden leave, or paid in lieu if the contract allows it. Gross misconduct is the main situation in which dismissal without notice may be lawful, and even then a fair process still needs to be followed.

Many disputes are resolved through a settlement agreement — a binding contract in which you typically agree to waive certain employment claims in exchange for a payment or other terms. Under section 203 of the Employment Rights Act 1996, the waiver is only effective if you have received advice on the agreement's terms and effect from a relevant independent adviser — usually a solicitor, a certified trade union official or a certified advice centre worker — before signing. You can negotiate the figures, the reference wording, any announcement, and restrictive covenants. Never sign under time pressure without understanding exactly what you are giving up; see our detailed guide on settlement agreements.

Pay, working time and family leave

The National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage are reviewed every April. Rates rose on 1 April 2026; check the current age-banded figures on gov.uk before relying on any specific number, as this guide will not stay current on rates by design. The Working Time Regulations 1998 set a default maximum average working week of 48 hours (unless you opt out), rest breaks, and a minimum of 5.6 weeks' paid holiday a year for full-time staff. Statutory Sick Pay changed materially from 6 April 2026, when both the three-day waiting period and the lower earnings limit were removed, so SSP is now payable from the first day of eligible sickness absence.

If you are made redundant, statutory redundancy pay is calculated by age band and length of service (capped at 20 years), using a week's pay figure capped at £751 for redundancies from 6 April 2026, giving a maximum statutory payment of £22,530 — use the official gov.uk redundancy calculator for your own figures, since the cap rises every April. Our guide on redundancy rights, fair practice and compensation covers the consultation process and what "fair" looks like in practice.

Gig economy and worker status

Whether someone is genuinely self-employed, a worker, or an employee depends on the true nature of the arrangement, not the label used in the paperwork. In Uber BV v Aslam, the Supreme Court confirmed that drivers described as self-employed contractors were in fact workers, giving them rights to the minimum wage, paid holiday and whistleblower protection once the reality of the arrangement — the degree of control Uber exercised, and the lack of a genuine substitution right — was examined. Tribunals apply the same substance-over-form approach across the gig economy: if you control your own business, take real financial risk, and can genuinely send someone else to do the work, self-employed status is more likely to hold up; if you are told when, where and how to work with no real independence, worker or employee status is more likely to apply regardless of what the contract says.

Worked example: Priya's dismissal

Priya, a fictional employee, is dismissed on 15 May 2026 after 18 months in her role, following a restructure she believes was really about her raising a grievance about her manager three weeks earlier. Because she has less than two years' service, she cannot bring an ordinary unfair dismissal claim under the current section 108 qualifying period. But if she can show the real reason for dismissal was connected to her raising the grievance — and, separately, if the grievance concerned a matter like whistleblowing or a protected characteristic — she may have an automatically unfair dismissal claim that needs no minimum service at all. She contacts Acas for early conciliation promptly, because her three-months-less-a-day time limit is running regardless of which type of claim she brings, and the sooner she starts, the more of the (now up to twelve-week) conciliation window she has before her tribunal deadline is reached.

Now vary the facts: if Priya's effective dismissal date had instead been 15 January 2027 — after the Employment Rights Act 2025 qualifying-period change is due to commence — her 18 months' service would already exceed the new six-month threshold, and she could bring an ordinary unfair dismissal claim without needing to rely on an automatically-unfair argument at all.

What to do if you have a workplace problem

1. Work out your employment status. Identify whether you are an employee, a worker or self-employed, since this decides which rights you can rely on. Job titles are not decisive — look at control, mutuality of obligation and personal service.
2. Gather your paperwork. Pull together your contract or written statement of particulars, recent payslips, the staff handbook, and any emails or letters connected to the issue. Good records usually decide close cases.
3. Raise the issue internally first, in writing. Most disputes are expected to go through the employer's grievance or disciplinary procedure before a tribunal will look favourably on a claim, following the Acas Code of Practice on disciplinary and grievance procedures. Skipping this stage can reduce any compensation awarded later. See our guide on resolving workplace disputes with Acas.
4. Check the time limit now, not later. Most tribunal claims, including unfair dismissal and discrimination, must be started within 3 months less one day of the act complained of. You must also contact Acas for early conciliation before lodging most claims, which pauses the clock for a limited period.
5. Do not assume a 2026 or 2027 reform already applies to you. Whether it is the unfair dismissal qualifying period, the tribunal time limit, or the fire-and-rehire rules, check the effective date against your own dismissal or event date before relying on the newer position.
6. Get guidance before you commit. Whether you are considering a settlement agreement, resigning, or bringing a tribunal claim, a short conversation with an experienced legal adviser can help you stress-test your thinking before you act.

Common mistakes that weaken an employee's position

• Assuming the Employment Rights Act 2025 changes already apply. Relying on a six-month qualifying period, an uncapped award, or a six-month tribunal time limit for something that happened before the relevant 2026/2027 commencement date can mean missing the real, current deadline or overestimating a claim's strength.
• Missing the Acas early conciliation step. It is a precondition for most claims, and leaving it too late eats into an already tight time limit.
• Treating a job title as decisive. Being called a "contractor" does not settle worker or employee status if the reality of the arrangement says otherwise.
• Signing a settlement agreement without independent advice, or under time pressure, without understanding what rights are being given up.
• Waiting too long to raise a grievance or take advice, which can both weaken the internal process and put the tribunal time limit at risk.

This guide provides general information about employment law in England and Wales. It is not legal advice and is not a substitute for advice tailored to your specific circumstances. The law described was accurate as at August 2026 and is subject to change, particularly around the Employment Rights Act 2025 commencement dates — always check GOV.UK and legislation.gov.uk for the most current position.

Last reviewed: August 2026 by a non-practising solicitor · Next review due: January 2027 or on legislative change.