Employment law for employers

Employees and workers must receive a written statement of the main terms of their employment on or before their first day, covering matters such as pay, hours, holiday, the job, the start date, notice periods and any probationary period. Some further information, such as details of pension arrangements, can be given within two months. A full contract of employment usually goes further than the statutory minimum, with terms on confidentiality, intellectual property and restrictions after the employment ends.

Two years, where the employment ends before 1 January 2027. Where it ends on or after that date, the qualifying period is six months, even if notice was given in 2026, and the cap on the compensatory award no longer applies. No qualifying period is needed where the reason for dismissal is automatically unfair, such as whistleblowing, pregnancy or asserting a statutory right, and discrimination claims can be brought from the first day. If you are considering dismissing someone, check the date on which their employment would end and take advice on the process.

When you and an employee agree that their employment will end, or agree to settle a dispute, and you want them to give up the right to bring tribunal claims in return for a payment. For the waiver to be valid, the agreement must be in writing, relate to the particular complaints, and the employee must have received advice on its terms and effect from a relevant independent adviser, usually a solicitor, who is named in the agreement. Acas guidance suggests that employers consider offering to pay for that advice.

It depends on what each payment is for. Pay in lieu of notice, wages, holiday pay, bonuses and payments for agreeing to restrictions are taxed as earnings, with National Insurance, in the normal way. Statutory redundancy pay and a compensation payment for the loss of the job can usually be paid free of income tax up to £30,000 in total, with income tax due on the amount above that and employer's Class 1A National Insurance on the excess. The agreement should list each payment separately so that your payroll can process it correctly.

Yes. Each employee at risk should be consulted individually before a final decision is made. Where you propose to make 20 or more employees redundant at one establishment within 90 days, you must also consult employee representatives collectively, starting at least 30 days before the first dismissal takes effect, or 45 days if 100 or more redundancies are proposed, and notify the Redundancy Payments Service on form HR1. For dismissals on or after 6 April 2026, failing to consult collectively can lead to a protective award of up to 180 days' pay for each affected employee.

If you buy a business or part of a business as a going concern, its employees usually transfer to you automatically under the TUPE regulations, on their existing terms and with their continuous service. Both the seller and the buyer have duties to inform, and in some cases consult, representatives of the affected employees before the transfer. TUPE does not usually apply when you buy the shares in a company, because the employer stays the same. We check which employees will transfer and what liabilities come with them.