Employment Rights Act 2025: Preparing Your Workplace for What’s Next

The Employment Rights Act 2025 is bringing significant changes to the way employers manage their people. With important employment law reforms taking effect in late 2026 and January 2027, now is the time to make sure your managers understand not only what is changing, but what they need to do differently in practice.

Our Employment Rights Act 2025 training programme for employers and managers focuses on three key areas organisations need to prepare for:

• Working effectively with trade unions
• Preventing sexual harassment at work
• Probationary periods and the new six-month unfair dismissal qualifying period

Each practical half-day workshop is delivered by experienced HR and employment law specialists, combining legal knowledge with real-world HR guidance to help managers confidently apply the new requirements in the workplace.

You can book individual workshops or complete the full three-part programme and save 15%.

Employment Rights Act 2025 Training for Employers

The Employment Rights Act 2025 is being implemented in stages, with some of the most important changes for employers arriving towards the end of 2026 and into 2027.

Simply updating policies will not be enough. Managers responsible for employees need to understand how the reforms affect everyday decisions, conversations and workplace processes.

Our practical Employment Rights Act training is designed to help employers turn the legislation into action, prepare managers for the changes ahead and reduce the risks that can arise when managers are unprepared.

Workshop 1: Working With Trade Unions

Wednesday 7 October 2026 | 9.30 am – 12.30 pm

The Employment Rights Act 2025 introduces significant changes to trade union rights and protections, making it increasingly important for employers and managers to understand how to work constructively and lawfully with trade unions.

Further trade union reforms are due to take effect in October 2026, including new requirements around informing workers of their right to join a trade union and a new statutory framework for trade union access to workplaces.

This practical trade union training for managers and employers will help attendees understand the changing trade union landscape and develop the confidence to manage workplace relationships appropriately.

The Workshop Will Cover:

• Key trade union changes under the Employment Rights Act 2025
• Understanding trade union recognition and workplace rights
• The right of workers to be informed of their right to join a trade union
• Trade union access to the workplace
• The role and rights of trade union representatives
• Communicating and consulting effectively with trade unions
• Managing employee relations in a unionised environment
• Common mistakes and how employers can reduce risk
• Practical scenarios for managers

Following the workshop, delegates should feel better equipped to understand the key trade union changes affecting employers, recognise the role and rights of trade union representatives, and respond appropriately when a union becomes involved.

The session will also help delegates communicate and consult more effectively, identify potential employee-relations risks and recognise when a matter should be escalated to HR or specialist advisors.

Ideal for: Business owners, HR professionals, senior leaders and managers who currently work with trade unions or may need to do so in the future.
Find Out More & Book Trade Union Training

Workshop 2: Preventing Sexual Harassment at Work

Wednesday 28 October 2026 | 9.30 am – 12.30 pm

Employers already have a legal duty to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment at work. From 30 October 2026, this duty is strengthened further, requiring employers to take all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment.

The changing legal framework means employers need to be able to demonstrate that prevention is embedded within their workplace rather than simply reacting when a complaint is made.

Our sexual harassment training for employers and managers provides practical guidance on understanding the strengthened preventative duty and how it applies in real workplace situations.

The Workshop Will Cover:

• What constitutes sexual harassment
• The strengthened preventative duty
• What “all reasonable steps” could mean in practice
• Identifying sexual harassment risks within your organisation
• Workplace culture and inappropriate behaviour
• The responsibilities of managers
• Recognising and challenging inappropriate conduct
• Handling concerns and disclosures appropriately
• Reporting routes and workplace procedures
• Practical workplace scenarios
• Steps employers can take to demonstrate prevention

The session is practical and interactive, helping managers recognise situations that may arise in real workplaces and understand how they should respond.

Ideal for: Managers, supervisors, HR professionals, senior leaders and employees with responsibility for workplace culture or managing people.
Find Out More & Book Sexual Harassment Training

Workshop 3: Probationary Periods and the New Six-Month Unfair Dismissal Right

Wednesday 25 November 2026 | 9.30 am – 12.30 pm

From 1 January 2027, the qualifying period for ordinary unfair dismissal protection reduces from two years to six months.

This means effective recruitment, onboarding, probation management and early performance management will become even more important.

Managers need to be confident about addressing concerns promptly, setting expectations and making appropriate decisions rather than allowing problems to continue unchecked.

Our practical probation and unfair dismissal training for managers will help employers prepare for the new six-month qualifying period and understand how effective probation management can reduce risk.

The Workshop Will Cover:

• The new six-month qualifying period for ordinary unfair dismissal
• What the change means for employers
• The difference between probationary periods and unfair dismissal protection
• Why probationary periods need to be actively managed
• Setting clear expectations from the start of employment
• Conducting effective probation reviews
• Managing performance and conduct concerns during probation
• Extending probationary periods appropriately
• Making and documenting decisions
• Understanding fair reasons and fair processes
• Day-one rights and automatically unfair dismissal risks
• Practical scenarios and common management mistakes

This workshop will help managers understand that a probationary period should be an active management process rather than simply a date in an employee’s contract.

Ideal for: Line managers, HR professionals, business owners and anyone responsible for recruitment, probation reviews, performance management or dismissal decisions.
Find Out More & Book Probation & Unfair Dismissal Training