Probationary Reviews
We appreciate there has been a lot of publicity about the reduction in the qualifying period for an employee to be able to bring an unfair dismissal claim. Here are some key dates to be aware of.
The Employment Rights Act 2025 reduces the qualifying period for claiming unfair dismissal from two years to six months.
The Government has stated that it intends changes to the unfair dismissal qualifying period to take effect on 1 January 2027, with protection against unfair dismissal applying retrospectively from that date meaning that employees hired from 1 July 2026 would gain protection from unfair dismissal after six months.
The Government had originally planned to remove the unfair dismissal qualifying period altogether (making unfair dismissal a day-one right), but the provisions were amended before the Employment Rights Act 2025 was finalised. Plans to introduce a statutory probation period, with a "lighter-touch process for employers to follow to dismiss an employee who is not right for the job", have been dropped. The change is introduced alongside the removal of the limit on the compensatory award in unfair dismissal claims.
In addition, The Employment Rights Act 2025 extends the time limit for bringing an employment tribunal claim to six months. The time limit for most claims is currently three months. The change will apply to all employment tribunal claims, including unfair dismissal and discrimination. The Government has confirmed that this measure will take effect no earlier than October 2026.
We continue to recommend that you tighten your onboarding/recruitment processes, conduct rigorous probation reviews (keep a written record of your findings), train your line managers and supervisors to spot issues or concerns early on and have conversations to tackle any performance issues as and when they arise within the probationary period. If you have issues or concerns make sure you record and manage them.
Probation reviews should always involve meeting with an employee to discuss their progress. The meeting should be one-to-one.
If you would like further guidance or assistance with probationary reviews, a process, correctly worded letters, agendas and forms or updating policies and procedures, please do let us know on: info@sos-hr.co.uk or call 01473 276 170.