People Matter – July 2026

Unfair dismissals - Now is the time to act

We blogged about it recently, but it is so important to SME businesses that we are flagging it again here.

Despite the reduction in unfair dismissal protection (from two years to six months) applying from 1st January 2027 on paper; in practice this means that everyone hired from 1 July 2026 onwards is effectively subject to the new rule already. Furthermore, you’ll have a shortened window for anyone you’ve hired since January 2025, as that two years you enjoyed for them is cut short.

If you have not done it already, on your immediate to do list (it’s already late July), is to update your employment contracts and company handbooks. You need tight wording on probation periods. This is because these will now have to be efficiently completed well within six months, to give you a lower risk chance to dismiss fairly if you do not feel they are up to the job.

Remember, the five fair reasons to dismiss someone are:

· Conduct

· Capability, ill health or performance

· Statutory restriction

· Redundancy

· Some other substantial reason (SOSR)

These themselves are not changing.

What about your processes? What does your probation process actually look like? How does it play out in a sub-sixth-month time period? What do you measure? How do you feed back to your employees?

And do your managers understand the issues, know the stakes and have competence in running the probation periods? Can they recognise underperformance early? Training is essential here and now.

Don’t forget that if a dismissal is automatically unfair, say as it is based on a protected characteristic like religion, the qualifying period is irrelevant any way.

There is one further change associated with this move. And that is that the compensation element of any award is to become uncapped – potentially increasing the financial cost.

So, easier to make unfair dismissal claims, plus the potential for higher awards… you need to get this right. For urgent help, please contact us.

Here’s a tip

If your business is in the hospitality sector, or some other industry where customer tipping is the norm, you’ll probably know that, following legislation, a new code of practice is due to be introduced in October this year.

The Government has just published its response to a public consultation and an updated draft code of practice on the allocation of tips. Given we are just a few months out from October, you would expect this to be close to its final form.

There were already robust laws in place ensuring that tips go to staff (fairly), and should be paid in a timely manner, according to a written policy and with records kept.

The new law requires that you should consult on your tipping policy with a trade union, elected employee representative or, if these do not exist, directly with the employees themselves. Every time the policy is reviewed (at least once every three years), the same consultation should happen. All workers should be provided with an anonymised summary.

The draft code emphasises that while the consultation needs to be genuine, proportionate, inclusive and transparent, you don’t need to accept every suggestion made as long as you are fair and transparent.

Consider minority groups or people less likely to involve themselves in the consultation. A majority vote may not be the mechanism for the fairest outcome. Likewise, equal shares for every worker may not be fairest either.

As with so much of HR, your policy and related record keeping are fundamental. All workers should have access to the policy and have a right to request their tipping records. These should be kept for a minimum of three years.

A tronc system is often the preferred way to manage tips, with a tronc master in charge of allocation. If you do this an use your accountant as tronc master, it is essential that the arrangement is absolutely independent from you as the employer.

Spotting the signs of domestic abuse

Football fans are well used to statistics for analysing the game but, disturbingly, another set of statistics associated with tournaments tells a nasty truth.

Research from Lancaster University shows that domestic abuse incidents increase by 26% when England play; and it’s 38% when they lose. Two years ago, during Euro 2024, a national police body recorded 300 domestic abuse cases linked to the football.

For a person experiencing domestic abuse, their workplace may be one of the few safe spaces available to them. This could mean they seek support amongst people they trust, or that you or colleagues notice signs that domestic abuse may be occurring.

Changes in behaviour such as time-keeping, concentration, or temperament could be one clue (although there could be other reasons behind these). Wearing unusual clothing to cover up physical signs another.

Abuse can include controlling behaviour, so patterns of phone calls or a partner showing up at work could be a giveaway as well. Of course, an employee could choose to directly disclose abuse to you, too.

A discreet, understanding approach is essential. You may be able to make practical changes to their work like reducing working-from-home days, or signposting third-party support. If you suspect a risk to life, you should call 999.

Tribunal statistics

Recently, the Government released its latest quarterly statistics for employment tribunals.

As might be expected with the direction of employment law, the open case load is up ( to 531,000), new cases are up – single claims by 39% year-on-year, and TUPE claims have seen a 227% year-on-year increase.

Unfair dismissal makes up 23% of all claims (including backlog) and it is of note that 51% of new claims included a claim for unfair dismissal. As we have been saying for two years, the Employment Rights Act will significantly open up the options for claiming unfair dismissal.

Worryingly, the Fair Work Agency have barely got started; while the reduction in employer protection to unfair dismissal from two years to six months (see article one) won’t start to filter through until post-1st January 2027.

One of the drivers of rising claims is likely to be AI – where disgruntled employees are perhaps “egged on” by the technology encouraging them to file a case based on inaccurate understanding of employment law and assisting them in writing verbose claims. But following proper procedure remains essential. You can be penalised for this alone, whether or not there is any underlying wrongdoing. Please reach out to us for professional help, if you receive a claim.

Have you updated your expenses policy?

It seems rare that a tax measure the government introduces benefits anyone these days (not many Chancellor’s “rabbit in a hat” moments). But it may have slipped your attention that the Approved Mileage Allowance Payment was raised earlier in the year, effective 6th April.

This affects people who drive their own car for work appointments (excluding commuting and company cars). Since 2011 the approved rate has been 45p per mile for the first 10,000 miles and 25p thereafter. There is now a significant jump to 55p per mile for the first 10,000 miles.

If you pay mileage, make sure to update your policies and operational procedures so that your employees and payroll team know where they stand. If you don’t pay it, or choose to pay a lesser amount, relevant employees can claim the equivalent amount via their self-assessment tax return.

Policy writing and policy updates are main services we provide, vital as employment law is constantly evolving. So if this kind of thing catches you out, speak to us about how we can help.

World Emoji Day 🥳

July 17th was World Emoji Day. But is it okay for, what was once dubbed the world’s fastest growing language, to be used in work communications?

Short answer is: it depends!

In their favour, emojis are excellent for conveying tone. What might sound unkind or rude with words alone may be transformed with a simple smiley face. They can also be fun, concise choices for communication.

And the case against? Emojis may seem frivolous, especially in serious situations. A manager announcing a string of redundancies would be unlikely to soften the blow with their use. They are also nuanced, with inappropriate double entendres a recipe for embarrassment or even a disciplinary hearing.

Sending to colleagues or customers, peers or bosses/employees, in messages or emails? Unless you decide to create a policy and think you can administer it successfully, it really comes down to the sender’s discretion. It might be the difference between successful communication or landing in the Unfair dismissals -