October 2026 brings the second big wave of the Employment Rights Act 2025, in 2 parts – 1 October and 30 October. If April’s changes felt like a warm-up lap, this is where the race starts.
The Act received Royal Assent on 18 December 2025 and will be switched on in stages through 2026 and 2027. The government’s latest implementation timeline, updated in August and tweaked again last week, fixes the October dates.
Most of the headlines are about HR. We’re payroll people, so we’ve looked at the changes through a payroll lens too. Be prepared, as your record-keeping is about to matter more than ever.
What changes in October 2026
Here’s the short version, in plain English.
From 1 October 2026
- The tribunal claim deadline doubles from 3 to 6 months. Staff and ex-staff get twice as long to bring most claims, including unlawful deductions from wages.
From 30 October 2026
- Sexual harassment duty rises to “all reasonable steps”. You’ll need training, clear reporting routes and proof you acted. A policy on its own won’t be enough.
- Liability for third-party harassment. You must not let customers, clients, patients or the public harass your staff.
- New union access rights. Unions can ask for access to workplaces, in person or online. Employers with fewer than 21 workers are exempt.
October (date tbc)
- The two-tier code returns for public sector outsourcing. Outsourced staff on public contracts get terms no less favourable than colleagues who transferred
Scotland is slightly different. There, the 6-month limit for breach of contract claims starts on 9 November 2026.
A few things have slipped past October:
- The written statement on the right to join a union is now due in January 2027.
- The tipping consultation duty is now due “by the end of 2026”.
- Fire and rehire restrictions and the 6-month qualifying period for unfair dismissal both arrive on 1 January 2027.
Why this lands on payroll’s desk
Most of October’s changes look like HR territory. But scratch the surface, and payroll’s fingerprints are all over them.
Pay mistakes stay live for longer
Unlawful deductions claims are among the most common tribunal claims, and they’re usually about pay. Think a missed overtime rate, wrong holiday pay or an underpaid final salary. For anything that happens from 1 October, a worker has six months to bring a claim instead of three.
That doubles the time a payroll slip has to come back and bite you. The solution is to get it right the first time, and keep an audit trail that proves it.
Your records are your defence
Since 6 April 2026, you’ve had to keep records that prove you’re meeting holiday entitlement and holiday pay rules, and keep them for 6 years. Add a longer claims window and your payroll history becomes your best witness.
If your holiday pay calculations live in someone’s head (or someone’s spreadsheet), now’s the time to fix that.
Sick pay from day one is already here
Since April, Statutory Sick Pay has been payable from the first qualifying day of sickness, and the Lower Earnings Limit has gone. If your payroll still waits three days, you’ve got an underpayment problem. From 1 October, staff also get 6 months to raise it.
Union changes touch payroll too
The statement on the right to join a union may have moved to January, but it’ll still need to go in your contracts and onboarding pack. Get it drafted now. More union members can also mean more requests to take union subscriptions through payroll (known as check-off), so make sure your system handles them cleanly.
Tips are next in the queue
Hospitality employers, keep an eye out. Before the end of 2026, you’ll need to consult workers when you write or revise your tipping policy, review it every 3 years and share an anonymised summary of their feedback. Tips and troncs run through payroll, so your policy and your payslips need to match.
January 2027 starts now
The 6-month qualifying period for unfair dismissal applies to dismissals from 1 January 2027. Anyone who started on or before 1 July 2026 will have 6 months’ service by then. Everyone else gets the protection 6 months after their start date. Clean, accurate starter records matter from day one.
Your October to-do list
Now is the time to take action
- Audit the last 6 months of payroll for underpayments, especially holiday pay, overtime and SSP
- Check your holiday records would stand up to a 6-year look-back
- Confirm SSP pays from day one with no earnings threshold
- Draft the right-to-join-a-union statement for contracts and onboarding, and plan how you’ll tell existing staff before January
- Make sure payroll can process union subscription deductions accurately (we can manage this for you, no problem)
- Refresh your sexual harassment policy, training and reporting routes, and make sure they cover customers and clients
- If you’re in hospitality, start planning your tipping policy consultation now. Our sister company Tips and Troncs can help you with it
- Tighten your starter paperwork ahead of the January 2027 unfair dismissal changes
It’s hardly glamorous work, but it costs a lot less than a tribunal.
Change is coming, and your payroll can keep up
The Employment Rights Act is the biggest shake-up of workers’ rights in a generation, and it’s rolling out in waves until 2027. Every wave puts more weight on accurate pay and airtight records.
That’s where we come in. Our team is made up of payroll pros who track every legislative change so you don’t have to. We keep your calculations right, your records audit-ready, and your team paid properly, every single time.
Want a second pair of eyes before October hits? Get in touch, and we’ll help you get ahead of it.
