ERA 2026 reforms: Key changes in October that you need to know

Further to our previous articles looking at the ERA 2026 reforms overview, the next phase of significant reforms under the Employment Rights Act 2025 (‘ERA 2025’) is coming into effect in October 2026, which includes the introduction of Employment tribunal time limits that are doubled, enhanced duties on employers to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace and potential liability for harassment by third parties, and wide-ranging trade union provisions.

Please note: this article was republished and updated to reflect the passage of time, timings are based on the most recent Government timeline and published commencement regulations where applicable.

Key Changes in Oct. 2026:

1.     Employment Tribunal Time limits from 1 Oct. 2026

Time limits for bringing most Employment Tribunal claims will increase from 3 months to 6 months with effect from 1 October 2026. This will apply to matters in which the “relevant date” is on or after 1 October 2026. The relevant date is the date of the dismissal, act, conduct or failure complained of or, where there is a series of acts/failures, the date of the last act/failure in the series. Claims based on a relevant date before 1 October 2026 will continue to be subject to a 3-month limitation period (subject to any extension of time due to the ACAS Early Conciliation procedure).

The existing rules on “stopping the clock” for ACAS Early Conciliation and the Employment Tribunal’s power to extend time are not impacted by these changes.

Key actions for employers: Extended tribunal time limits should be considered when handling employee relations and dispute resolution strategies. Where a dispute appears likely, it is a good idea for employers to take statements from relevant members of staff and record its side of event as soon as possible so as to protect its position in the event that a claim is brought and staff/witness leave or memories fade before the hearing.

2.     Harassment from 30 Oct. 2026

• Duty to prevent sexual harassment

Currently, since October 2024 employers have been under a positive, pro-active duty to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment of employees and workers in the course of their employment (the “Preventative Duty”). From 30 October 2026, this duty will be strengthened to a requirement to take “all reasonable steps”.

This means that, whilst employers might have previously chosen to take some (but not all) the reasonable steps they could take to prevent sexual harassment, they will now be expected to take them all without exception. Future regulations may specify what steps an employer must take, but unhelpfully for employers these are not expected until well after the new laws come into force. Existing guidance from the Equality and Human Rights Commission (‘EHRC’), however, gives examples of what steps are likely to be required based on the current duty (such as risk assessments, action plans, policies, reporting and complaints procedures and training).

It will therefore become much harder to defend a sexual harassment claim and, a

successful claim – including a finding that the Preventative Duty has been breached –

will result in employers facing potential investigation and enforcement action by the

Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) and an uplift of up to 25% in the

compensation awarded to the employee.

• Duty to prevent harassment by third parties

Employer liability for third party harassment will come into force. This means that, in addition to being prohibited from harassing their own employees, employers must also not permit a third party - such as clients, suppliers, contractors or business contacts –to harass their employees.

Harassment in this context is not limited to sexual harassment. Harassment linked to all relevant protected characteristics under the Equality Act 2010 are in scope. An employer will be liable to a claim if a third-party harasses an employee in the course of their employment and the employer is not able to demonstrate that it took “all reasonable steps” to prevent that. Liability can be triggered by a single incident.

For employers in sectors where staff frequently come into contact with third parties (retail and hospitality, for example), the duty to take all reasonable steps to prevent third-party harassment will be particularly difficult to meet since employers have far less control over the actions of third-parties than they do over their staff. The Government has indicated that the standard expected of employers in preventing third-party harassment will be lower than that which applies to preventing harassment by their own staff, but this remains to be seen.

Key actions for employers: To prepare, employers should undertake or update (as appropriate) their risk assessments and action plans to ensure they are taking all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment before the law comes into force. Employers will need to ensure all reasonable steps are taken (which may include updating anti-harassment policies and complaints-handling procedures, training for managers and employees on the enhanced duty and more). Compliance should be reviewed on an ongoing basis.

3. Trade Unions from 30 October 2026

Key measures relating to trade unions include:

• Obligation on employers to inform workers of their right to join a trade union: A written statement informing workers of their right to join a union must be provided when the worker receives their section 1 statement of terms and conditions of employment, and at other prescribed times. Further detail is still awaited despite the close deadline, which will address the form and content of the statement, how it should be delivered and when it should be reissued.

• A new broad right for trade unions to request access to workplace: updated rules on a trade union's right of access to the workplace. Specifically, a qualifying trade union will be able to give an employer a request for access under an “access agreement”. Those agreements will give union officials the right to meet, support, represent, recruit or organise workers (whether or not they are a member of a trade union) and facilitate collective bargaining. If an access agreement cannot be reached between the employer and the union, the union may apply to the Central Arbitration Committee for an order granting access. Significant fines (up to £500,000 for repeated breaches) can be issued by the CAC for non-compliance. The final code of practice and draft regulations were laid before Parliament following a recent consultation, which confirm that there will be only limited exceptions to this new right, such as for micro-employers who have less than 21 employees.

• A new package of rights and protections: The trade union reforms also include new rights of enhanced time-off for union equality representatives to carry out their duties, and a new right to reasonable accommodation and facilities for trade union representatives carrying out their duties. The ERA 2025 will also enhance protections for workers against detriment for taking protected industrial action and strengthen the unfair practices regime in the recognition and derecognition process.

These are significant changes, which may lead to an increase in workers’ awareness of trade unions and an increase in the level of union membership. We may also see more proactive steps being taken by trade unions to enter sectors where they have not traditionally had a presence, employers who have not previously had to engage with unions may have to plan for this possibility.

Key actions for employers: Employers should prepare now by considering their overall industrial relations strategy and employee engagement, identifying how physical and digital access could be facilitated in practice and identifying key stakeholders who will need to understand the new requirements in order to respond swiftly in the event of a new access request.

4.     DELAYED IMPLEMENTATION - Duty to inform employees about their right to

join a trade union

Employers will be obliged to give workers a written statement informing them that they

have a right to join a trade union. This measure was initially due to take effect on 30

October 2026. However, the Government’s updated ERA 2025 implementation

timetable published on 25 September 2026, indicates that this will now happen in

January 2027.

The Government launched a consultation on its proposals in October 2025 which

closed on 18 December 2025. The Government published its response to that

consultation confirming the approach it will take on 25 September 2026.

In addition to these significant changes coming down the line, employers should also be looking at the further changes in January 2027 which will have an impact for all employers - notably the changes to unfair dismissal laws (to reduce the current qualifying period for protection against ‘ordinary’ unfair dismissal from two years to six months and removing the compensation cap) and significant restrictions on fire and rehire/replace.

Key actions for employers: Affected employers should review and amend their processes.

The October 2026 changes include some of the more significant changes in the ERA 2025 for most employers. Proactive preparation is key. If you have not yet started, it is not too late to take the appropriate steps now to prepare for the changes, such as policy and contract reviews, HR and manager training, strategic planning and compliance risk reviews to ensure the business is ready to navigate the changes. Please do not hesitate to contact a member of  our Employment team (enquiry@gulegal.org), if you would like to discuss these matters further.