UK employment law in February 2026: Legal changes people professionals need to know

Employment Rights Act 2025 – wave of consultations issued   

On 3 February 2026, the government published an updated implementation timetable for the ERA 2025. Members can access the updates on the CIPD's tracker.  

Alongside this update, the government issued a series of consultations looking at how the provisions of the ERA will be put into practice through secondary legislation. These consultations are a critical opportunity for employers to influence how the law will operate in practice, before statutory wording is finalised. 

The CIPD is actively engaging with government on these consultations on behalf of the profession. 

Key consultations to be aware of: 

Tipping 

Since 1 October 2024, employers in sectors where tips are commonplace have been required to ensure tips are allocated fairly, in-line with a statutory code of practice. 

While tips are often associated with hospitality, the legislation also applies to gratuities and service charges, meaning that organisations in other sectors should review whether the code applies to their workforce - for example in tourism, transport (including taxis), personal services (for example, hairdressing and beauty) and food delivery. People professionals must ensure that reward practices in these areas are legally compliant and clearly communicated, to reduce the risk of disputes and reputational harm. 

The ERA consultation on this tipping code proposes going further by asking whether employers should be required to consult workers (and, where relevant, trade unions or elected employee representatives) on tipping policies. The proposals also include the potential for tribunal uplifts where employers fail to consult appropriately. 

The CIPD will respond to this consultation on behalf of people professionals. Organisations that wish to submit their own response can do so online - the consultation closes on 1 April 2026. 

Flexible working

Proposed changes under this consultation would require employers to provide more structured and transparent reasoning when refusing a flexible working request (where the refusal is linked to one of the eight statutory business grounds).  

The consultation explores what a reasonable and proportionate process might look like, including what information employers should provide, how consultation with employees could operate in practice, and what support and guidance organisations need to handle requests consistently and fairly. 

For people professionals, this is a pertinent consultation that will affect employee experience and require line managers' training. 

The CIPD will submit a response on behalf of the profession. Employers can also respond directly online - this consultation is open until 30 April 2026. 

Fire and rehire

Building on the existing statutory code, the consultation on fire and rehire (dismissal and reengagement) examines whether further restrictions should be introduced. It asks whether certain contractual changes, such as seemingly using fire and rehire to impose changes to the likes of expenses, benefits, non-cash perks and shift patterns, should be classed as "restricted changes" that employers should not be able to impose through dismissal and re-engagement (please note that this is separate consultation to the ERA amendment in relation to unfair dismissal and fire and rehire; making dismissals automatically unfair unless employers can demonstrate unavoidable financial necessity). 

The CIPD will respond to the current consultation on restricted changes, ensuring the profession's perspective on workforce flexibility, sustainability and employee relations is heard. Employers can find the consultation online, it is open until 1 April 2026.

Trade unions

One aspect of trade union reform that is being consulted on is the aim to strengthen the current Code of Practice on access and unfair practices during the recognition and derecognition process. In other words, writing into the Code what employer actions are unfair when unions are trying to state their case to employees. An example of an alleged unfair practice may be an employer subtly pressuring line managers to persuade staff to vote against union recognition. 

Writing these unfair practices into the Code would be the first time that this behaviour is quantified in legislation and therefore any proposed changes to the Code that come as a result of the consultation aim to ensure that the process of statutory recognition and derecognition for trade unions is clearer, and that unions and employees have more opportunity to organise in the workplace. 

For people professionals, these changes have significant implications for employee relations strategy and how employers deal with requests for recognition, before the statutory process is triggered. They also build on the extensive changes already in place or in the pipeline for trade union relations. Members can use the trade unions changes hub to stay up to date with resources designed to support them through these years of change. 

The CIPD will respond to this consultation on behalf of the profession. Employers can also submit responses online. It is open until 1 April 2026. 

Employers may also want to note a separate Acas consultation around revising the Code on Trade Union activities. This Code is not statutory but is considered at tribunal when calculating awards. The revised Code seeks to clarify how employers should provide reasonable time off, accommodation and facilities, for trade union representatives - including the new role and rights of union equality representatives.  

The CIPD will be responding to the Acas consultation on behalf of the people profession. 

Tribunal to note 

In Alpha Anne and others v Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children NHS Foundation Trust (2025), the Employment Appeal Tribunal considered indirect discrimination risks arising from TUPE where transferred employees are not moved onto more favourable terms and conditions enjoyed by the existing workforce. 

As summarised in People Management, the case highlights the importance of assessing demographic make up of the transferring workforce, alongside contractual differences, as part of the information gathering exercise people managers should carry out in preparation for a TUPE transfer.  Although TUPE requires a new employer to maintain the terms and conditions of transferring employees, where a majority of transferring employees share a particular protected characteristic - in this case the transferring workforce was made up predominantly of black and minority ethnic minority employees - compared with the existing workforce, maintaining inferior terms  can expose employers to discrimination claims. 

For members, the CIPD provide a guide to support the TUPE process.