The facts
Employers must take all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment, strengthening the earlier reasonable-steps duty. New third-party protections cover harassment during employment where the employer failed to take all reasonable preventive steps, including conduct by customers or clients. [2][3][4][6][7]
Independent trade unions gain rights to seek workplace access and engage with workers in person or digitally. The commencement instrument also activates recognition-process and representative-facility provisions, with transitional protections for earlier cases. [1][2][3]
A separate recognition and derecognition code takes effect on 30 October. Its order was made on 26 October and laid on 27 October; it preserves the previous code for specified applications received by the Central Arbitration Committee before 30 October. [5]
These measures apply in England, Wales and Scotland. The government's timetable places the shorter unfair-dismissal qualifying period and removal of the compensatory cap on 1 January 2027; they do not take effect with this October package. [2][3][5][6][7]
Sources
References support the numbered facts above. Source checks: 30 Oct 2026, 12:22 UTC.
- Employment Rights Act 2025 commencement No. 6: SI 2026/1065
UK legislation.gov.uk · Primary source · 1 Oct 2026
Actual instrument and explanatory note read. Regulation 3 expressly appoints 30 October for listed provisions; regulations 4–8 preserve earlier recognition cases and representative rights. Making, commencement and the 2025 Act's enactment are distinct.
- New employment rights: guidance for businesses and workers
UK government / Business.gov.uk · Primary source · 28 Oct 2026
Actual page read; date is its stated last update. The 30 October duties are distinguished from the January 2027 unfair-dismissal changes and earlier measures.
- Summary of Employment Rights Act 2025
Association of Optometrists · Reporting · 29 Oct 2026
Actual independent professional association's legal explanation read. AOP is separate from government and BRC. Its interpretation is checked against the actual provisions; unrelated dates and an apparent compensation-cap typo are not repeated.
- Employment Rights Act implementation: October changes
British Retail Consortium / Cara Shepherd · Reporting · 30 Sept 2026
Actual industry-body account read. It describes planned October implementation; its then-pending parliamentary condition is resolved using the later made instruments, not treated as a present hold.
- Recognition and derecognition access code: SI 2026/1129
UK legislation.gov.uk · Primary source · 26 Oct 2026
Actual made order read. It concerns access and unfair practices during recognition/derecognition, not a blanket right of immediate unrestricted entry. Express Great Britain extent and earlier-case savings retained.
- Employment Rights Act 2025: section 20
UK legislation.gov.uk · Primary source
Actual section read with E+W+S extent. The site's prospective label/outstanding editorial changes are checked against SI 2026/1065's operative commencement date.
- Employment Rights Act 2025: section 21
UK legislation.gov.uk · Primary source
Actual statutory text read: section 40(1A)–(1C) employer duty, third-party definition and all-reasonable-steps test. Do not substitute AOP's misidentified section number or infer automatic liability for every incident.