Employment Matters

From January 2027, employees will gain unfair dismissal protection after just six months, significantly shortening the current two-year threshold. This change reshapes how employers manage probation, with decisions needing to be made earlier to avoid legal risk. Businesses should act now to tighten processes, train managers and prepare for increased claims and costs.

On 6 April 2026, the ERA 2025 amended the definition of a "qualifying disclosure" to expressly include disclosures that sexual harassment has occurred, is occurring, or is likely to occur.

Mishcon de Reya has announced that Anna Byford has joined the firm as a partner in its Employment department. Anna will lead the Employment Innovate team, which provides the full spectrum of contentious and non-contentious employment, business immigration and incentives advice to fast-growth, scale-up businesses in the Innovation economy.

Regulated sectors tend to have mechanisms that limit the employability of individuals who are dismissed for regulatory reasons. Dismissals in certain contexts can therefore cause significant, or even career-impacting, losses to the employee, because they may prevent the employee from obtaining employment in the same sector either until the matter has been determined by a relevant regulator or at all.

The Employment Rights Act 2025 introduces a major shift to collective redundancy rules, with a new organisation-wide trigger capturing redundancies across multiple sites. This change, coupled with significantly increased financial penalties, raises the stakes for multi-site employers. With implementation expected in 2027, businesses should act now to centralise tracking, plan consultation logistics, and align their processes.

In November 2025, the Government published a working paper proposing reforms to the law on non-compete clauses in employment contracts. The options under consideration range from an outright ban to statutory duration caps and salary-based thresholds.

Mishcon de Reya Partner Jennifer Millins and Jonathan Chamberlain of Gowling WLG (UK) LLP are featured in the Employment Lawyers' Association (ELA)'s July Briefing, examining the UK Government’s latest proposals to reform non-compete clauses in employment contracts and ELA’s response to the consultation.

Regional uncertainty is forcing UAE employers to make fast workforce decisions. Learn how to balance legal compliance, business continuity and employee trust while managing attendance, mobility and cost pressures.

Mishcon de Reya Partner Jennifer Millins and Claire Darwin KC of Devereux Chambers are featured in the Employment Lawyers' Association (ELA)'s June Briefing, assessing the growing gap between UK and EU pay transparency requirements.

We want to flag some upcoming important deadlines relating to employee equity incentive arrangements.

Women and ethnic minority professionals are disproportionately appointed to senior roles during times of crisis, volatility or reputational risk. This phenomenon, known as "The Glass Cliff", sees women and ethnic minority professionals in positions of heightened exposure, where the margin for error is slim, the scrutiny intense and the risk of failure and blame are high.