# Employment law: longer tribunal time limit and new harassment duties

> Tribunal claim time limits doubled to six months from 1 Oct 2026. From 30 Oct 2026 employers must take all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment.

- Published: 25 Sep 2026
- Type: Deadline
- Topic: Workforce
- For: Practice managers, PCN leads
- Applies to: England, Scotland, Wales
- Deadline: 30 Oct 2026
- Review: Reviewed by the Abtrace team
- Web page: https://ontherecord.abtrace.com/posts/employment-law-changes-autumn-2026/

## What's changed

- From 1 Oct 2026, staff have six months rather than three to bring an Employment Tribunal claim. For breach of contract claims in Scotland the change starts on 9 Nov 2026.
- From 30 Oct 2026, employers must take "all reasonable steps" to prevent sexual harassment of employees, and must not permit harassment by third parties.
- From January 2027, the unfair dismissal qualifying period falls to six months and the cap on compensatory awards is removed.

## Who it affects

Practices and PCNs as employers in England, Scotland and Wales. The third-party duty is likely to matter most for reception and other patient-facing teams.

## What to do

- Review your harassment policy so it covers patients, relatives and contractors, and sets out how staff report incidents.
- Record the steps you take to prevent harassment, such as training, notices and how you act on reports.
- Keep employment records and notes of disputes for longer, given the six month claim window.
- Check probation and dismissal processes ahead of the January 2027 change.

## Deadline

The new duty to prevent sexual harassment starts on 30 Oct 2026.

## Sources

- [GOV.UK: Plan to Make Work Pay and Employment Rights Act timeline update](https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/implementing-the-plan-to-make-work-pay-and-employment-rights-act/plan-to-make-work-pay-and-employment-rights-act-timeline-update)
- [legislation.gov.uk: Employment Rights Act 2025, section 158 (extent)](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2025/36/section/158)

Published by Abtrace on On the Record (https://ontherecord.abtrace.com/). Summaries only; always check the linked source.