UK backs six-month unfair dismissal rule; sick pay 2026

Ministers have scrapped their day-one unfair dismissal pledge and will instead set a six-month qualifying period, after opposition in the House of Lords and pushback from business. Day-one rights to statutory sick pay and paternity leave remain on course for April 2026, with the Department for Business and Trade calling this a workable package to get the Employment Rights Bill over the line.

Here’s the simple version of the law today. In most cases you can only claim unfair dismissal after two years with the same employer. There are important exceptions: discrimination and other automatically unfair reasons are protected from day one. The planned change cuts that general wait to six months once the new law starts.

Why the change now? The bill kept stalling in the Lords, where peers twice backed a six-month rule, slowing the whole package. Accepting six months helps ministers hold their timetable for other reforms. The government also says it will lock the new threshold into primary legislation and lift the cap on unfair dismissal compensation.

Ministers had originally floated day-one protection alongside a new legal probation period to be set after consultation. The compromise reached with unions and employers centres on the six-month threshold, with day-one sick pay and paternity leave still due in April 2026; reporting suggests a statutory probation period will not feature in this bill.

How different groups are reacting matters to all of us learning how laws are made. The TUC says the priority is getting rights onto the statute book by next April, while critics in the Conservative Party have called the move a “humiliating U-turn”.

What this means if you’re starting a job in the coming months. Until the new law takes effect, the two-year rule still applies, unless your case is an automatically unfair dismissal or discrimination. Once the bill passes and the six-month rule begins, you gain the right to challenge a firing much earlier than today. Keep notes of inductions, objectives and any meetings during probation.

If you’re dismissed in your first months, remember that some reasons are protected straight away. Examples include whistleblowing, trade union activity and certain health and safety issues, as well as discrimination because of a protected characteristic. If any of those are in play, speak to your union or Acas promptly and check the time limits for claims.

For managers and school or college leaders with staff, the message is plan early. You will still need a fair reason and a fair process for dismissal, even during probation, and you will need payroll and policy updates ready for day-one sick pay and paternity leave by April 2026. Training supervisors now will save stress later.

Dates to mark. On 27 November 2025 ministers confirmed the six-month approach to get the Employment Rights Bill moving; April 2026 is the target for day-one sick pay and paternity leave, subject to Royal Assent. Expect detailed guidance from the Department for Business and Trade and Acas once Parliament signs off.

A quick recap for your notes. Today: two years for most unfair dismissal claims. Planned: six months once the new law starts. Always protected: automatically unfair reasons and discrimination. Coming April 2026: day-one sick pay and paternity leave. This explainer is for learning, not legal advice-speak to Acas or a union if you need help.