The Employment Law Pod

Festive fun or festive fallout? HR lessons from the year end

• Boyes Turner

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In our last employment podcast of the year Claire Taylor- Evans, Partner and Harjeet Nangla, Senior Associate discuss what might be on HR’s 2025 Christmas Wish List.

Can you spot the festive song lyrics throughout the episode?

The discussion starts with the risk of workplace Christmas parties, looking at employer liability, festive misconduct and the heightened obligations introduced by the Worker Protection Act. Claire and Harjeet unpack what “reasonable steps” really mean, the role of risk assessments, training and workplace culture, and how the EHRC is beginning to use its enforcement powers.

The conversation then turns to the long-awaited Employment Rights Bill, soon to become the Employment Rights Act 2025. The episode provides a practical overview of what’s changing, when those changes are expected to take effect, and why employers should start planning now. 

Finally, the episode addresses the rise in restructures and redundancies amid economic uncertainty. Claire and Harjeet highlight common pitfalls around collective redundancy thresholds, settlement agreements and voluntary redundancies, and explain why early HR involvement and robust tracking are critical to avoiding costly mistakes.

A festive but practical end-of-year episode packed with insights to help HR teams stay compliant, reduce risk and prepare for what lies ahead in 2026 and beyond.

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Claire Taylor-Evans: 00:04
Hello and welcome to the Employment Law Pod from Boys Turner. My name's Claire Taylor Evans, a partner in the employment team at Boys Turner, and I'm delighted to be joined today by Harjeet Nangler, who is our newest recruit in the employment team. Harjeet's a senior associate who brings a wealth of experience with her, and I'm delighted that she's on board. Hi, Harjeet. Hi Claire, and it's lovely to be here today. So, as this is the last podcast of the year, I can't believe we're quite at Christmas. This year's flown by, hasn't it? We thought we would get into the festive spirit and take a look at what might be on HR's Christmas wish list to Santa. And this is based on obviously our experience of what's on our desk at the moment, a quick poll of our HR community, and of course what we're seeing in practice because the same things tend to recur every year, and we know what HR's pain points are. And as the mince pies and mulled wine are beckoning, and we're in touching distance of Christmas, we thought we'd also have a bit of festive fun by sneaking in some Krimbo song lyrics. So do see if you can spot them. Okay, so on a quick poll of our HR community, coming in at number one on their Christmas wish list is getting through the festive season without incident, grievances, or allegations of sexual harassment. Yes, that's right. RHR colleagues tell us that they want their staff Christmas party to be a truly silent night. But of course, every year we see the same issues at Christmas parties, don't we, Harji? Often employers, you know, provide a free bar, people let their hair down, they drink alcohol, which impedes their judgment. And this is a real risk area for employers, isn't it? It is. And as we know, employers are vicariously liable for their acts of their employees during the course of employment, which we know covers Christmas parties. So it's really important for HR to promote good behaviour at these events and remind staff that they are in fact ambassadors for the company at all times, make sure that they drink responsibly and that they adhere to workplace policies as expected. But this is even more important, of course, since the introduction of the Worker Protection Act, which came into force in October 2024, because that, as we know, imposed additional obligations on employers to take proactive steps and anticipatory steps, in fact, to prevent sexual harassment of their employees. And of course, there's really good reasons for the introduction of this legislation. As we know, 79% of sexual harassment cases do go unreported. And there are a number of reasons for this. Often there is fear of reprisal because sexual harassment is often not motivated by sex, in fact, or sexual motivation, but by power imbalances in the workforce. Sometimes there's a lack of information, obviously, on what constitutes sexual harassment or how to report it. And sometimes there are cultures where banter and inappropriate behaviour is sometimes normalized and accepted and not challenged. So people fear that complaints won't be taken seriously if they do speak up. So, really, this legislation was brought in to tackle and encourage employers to take a more proactive approach to shaping a psychologically safe workplace culture.

Harjeet Nangla: 03:31
That's really interesting, Claire. But can you remind me what reasonable steps are?

Claire Taylor-Evans: 03:36
Yeah, I think this is the difficulty because it depends on the risk profile of the organization. And that's why it's really quite difficult for employers because, of course, there's no one size fits all approach. What's considered reasonable will vary by obviously the size of the employer, the resources available to them, the sector in which they operate. So we see, for example, a lot of our clients in the leisure and hospitality sector, where employees interact regularly with third parties and customers, often late at night, often alone, often where alcohol is being consumed, then expectations on them will be higher and their duty more difficult to discharge. And I think it's also important to remember that this obligation applies to sexual harassment not just by employees but also third parties. So although this currently can't be brought as a standalone claim in the employment tribunal, and it can only be enforced by the Equalities and Human Rights Commission, which is the government regulatory body, there are plans afoot under the new Employment Rights Bill that we're going to talk about shortly to extend the tribunal's jurisdiction to cover third-party harassment.

Harjeet Nangla: 04:44
You talk about enforcement action, Claire, and I understand from the news, and it's been littered with various claims and issues being brought regarding sexual harassment. Has the EHRC taken a lot of action?

Claire Taylor-Evans: 04:57
Yeah, that's right. So we're just over a year now since the introduction of the Work Protection Act, and we have seen the EHRC really flexing their muscles and demonstrating their new enforcement powers. So we've seen the likes of Liddell, McDonald's, all making headlines and being forced to enter into action plans where the practices are found to be lacking by the EHRC. So employers really better watch out for the reputational risks that can arise. And of course, we're going to see increased obligations under the forthcoming Employment Rights Bill and a raisin of the duty to take reasonable steps. So at the moment, employers are obliged to take reasonable steps, but under the employment rights bill, they are going to have to take all reasonable steps. And that is one little word, but obviously is going to have quite significant implications because taking all reasonable steps really means there are no other steps that an employer could have taken. So that's a really, really high bar.

Harjeet Nangla: 05:57
And you said, Claire, it depends on the organisation or the size of the organisation. But can you give some examples of reasonable steps employers can take?

Claire Taylor-Evans: 06:06
Yeah, so I mean the first thing I would say to clients is you need to undertake a risk assessment. And our team have done a lot of work with clients on this in supporting them over the past year in relation to preparing bespoke risk assessments. So really looking at their business, looking at their workplace composition, the workplace culture, the environment, the sector in which they operate, and obviously our experience of that sector and the risks that that poses. And then obviously that risk assessment then informs the action plan. So often we find that there's work that needs to be done to policies. We need to check that there's an employee voice mechanism, that the client has staff surveys in place to see whether staff feel empowered to speak up and there's a speak-up culture. And then there's often a need for education, a campaign of education and awareness, which really starts at the top with a senior leadership team because it's important that this sort of cultural behaviour is modelled from the top down. We also need to make sure there's proper confidential reporting channels and that there's a comprehensive training program for both HR but also managers and staff, and that would include active bystander training and for managers tailored training on recognising complaints and dealing with those sensitively and confidentially. So hopefully our listeners have already got this in place, but obviously, if if not, we can we can provide support with that. But I also think it's really important to point out that seeing an increase in complaints is not a bad thing, and it often means that this approach is working. So we certainly can't guarantee that you won't get any grievances or complaints by putting in this framework, but it hopefully will create a really positive and safe working environment. So at number two on our HR Christmas wish list is some clarity on the employment rights bill. So since its announcement, we've had months and months of parliamentary ping pong between the House of Lords and the House of Commons. But it really is the most wonderful time of the year because on Tuesday, the 16th of December, the Employment Rights Bill was finally passed, and it's due to become the Employment Rights Act 2025 before the end of the year. But it looks quite different to what Labour First promised, doesn't it?

Harjeet Nangla: 08:33
It does actually, and it's for me as an employment lawyer, it's an interesting time of the year to for employment law. So we know the employment rights bill, soon to become Act, is introducing the biggest changes to employment law that we've seen in a generation, including my generation. And so many employers, HR professionals, instead of spending that time in terms of Christmas time, mistletoe and wine, are very much or should be head scratching in terms of thinking, how do we plan for this? How do we think about best implementation? So I think this is a prime opportunity, especially in in terms of the use of this podcast, is for us to think about well, what is changing and what do we do and when do we do it? Yeah, absolutely. So what is changing then? So immediately upon royal assent, so that's when we have the royal seal of approval. We're going to have some immediate changes which will affect more larger employers than those small to medium sized businesses, and that's relating to strike actions. It will repeal the Trade Union Act and give some protection around the right not to be dismissed if you're striking. The more I think pertinent changes affecting small to medium-sized businesses will be the changes being introduced in April 2026. And so it's definitely worth us exploring what those changes are. So, firstly, and it's a very kind of overview, high-level overview for the purpose of this podcast. We're looking at, for example, the introduction of statutory sick pay changing from three waiting days to a day one right, which is going to have a significant potential impact in terms of costs of sick pay. We're also looking at the removal of the lower earnings limit. So more workers will be eligible for statutory sick pay. And again, that'll be introduced in April 2026. Other day one rights are moving forward to include family-friendly rights. Oh, yeah. So we've got paternity leave and unpaid parental leave. So the removal of the usual 26 weeks or two years service thresholds are removed. So managers approving leave need to be aware of these changes and able to recognise what should or shouldn't be approved. We've got the introduction of the Fair Work Agency, which establishes that enforcement of changes. So there's two things coming out of the employment rights bill. One is bringing forward a lot of rights much earlier, but two, non-compliance results in higher liability and compensation issues arising. So failure to comply will now have a bigger impact for businesses. And this fair work agency is designed really to consolidate enforcement action, and they will be taking a proactive role in carrying out inspections and investigations into non-compliance issues. So it's worth bearing in mind. We've got collective redundancy protective awards being increased, double liability from 90 days paired to 180 days. So that's a significant leap in terms of potential liability if you get your consultation obligations wrong. Whistleblowing and harassment, which you touched upon in terms of sexual harassment, it will be treated as a qualifying protected disclosure. So there's not going to be any complications as to whether they have or they haven't. If they do, they have and they will be protected. So employers need to be careful and act sensitively in terms of dealing with those complaints. We've got trade union measures, simplification of voting rights, and gender pay gap reporting. So that's being brought in in terms of April. But one key thing about the bill is it's a phased implementation process. So this is just phase one. We've got phase two in terms of rights coming in in October 2026, and then again in 2027. So in October 2026, I think the kind of headline ones there are fire and rehire or fire and replace. So what employers can and can't do when they're trying to vary terms and conditions of employment. We've got strengthening of trade union access and recognition again could have a big impact on smaller to medium-sized businesses. And employment tribunal limits in terms of bringing claims will increase for many claims from three to six months. Again, would potentially have a significant impact upon the number of claims that employers may have to defend. 2027, the phase, kind of the final phase of the implementation of the bill, no certain dates are given yet, and it is still subject actually to consultation, some of these changes. So just be mindful of that. But I think the biggest change in 2027 is this unfair dismissal and the qualifying period to reduce from what we know to be two years to six months.

Claire Taylor-Evans: 13:21
Yeah, I think that's going to have massive implications, isn't it? And I think that's what everyone is focusing on. The biggest changes under the employment rights bill. So in terms of those, the the removal of the cap on NFA dismissal, and obviously the change from the current two-year qualifying period, which is now going to be reduced down to six months. What do you think businesses could be doing to start to prepare for those now? Because obviously some of these dates are quite a way off in the future.

Harjeet Nangla: 13:53
I think the reality of this is that employers need to recognise that this isn't just a technical update, it's very much going to require a change in the mindset of the organisation from onboarding practices right through to the end of that employment, so absence management leave, uh, employee relations. So when it comes to unfair dismissal, actually, that's just something in the future. Protecting and minimising that risk really boils down to the fact that employers need to be planning for improved through performance review processes. You know, probationary periods are no longer that soft landing, or we can get rid of the employee without much effort and explanation that is going to change. And I think you're going to have to be able to justify dismissals during that period too. So we should be looking at training for managers, definitely on performance management and probationary periods and ensuring there's that paper trail, there's there's recorded performance issues, and often managers find it difficult to have constructive conversations and making that record. But as long as it's factual and objective, it's really important that records are kept.

Claire Taylor-Evans: 15:03
Yeah, because I think that we see that a lot, don't we, where managers, you know, they come to HR after the probationary period has passed and suddenly say that the employee isn't actually performing, but they haven't proactively managed that process. And that's, as you say, Hajit, where it's going to be really, really important now with the the reduction in the eligibility for unfair dismissal criteria coming down to six months. It's going to be so important to properly manage that that probationary period and possibly look as well to dovetail your contractual probationary periods in line with the the statutory qualifying period if you if you haven't already. And I also think, I don't know about you, but the the you know the lifting of the statutory cap is going to have quite significant implications, you know, particularly for high earners. Because so uh just as a recap, currently the the compensatory award is capped at a year's pay or 118,000 and whichever is lower.

Harjeet Nangla: 16:05
Yeah. And this was actually raised in the House of House of Lords, and the key objection was, you know, how how do you manage how you know if you lift the cap, it's gonna be chaos. And the response was, well, we've lifted the cap on discrimination claims and we didn't see that chaos. And so they're anticipating or at least hoping that it's not gonna result in chaos. But I think what's gonna happen is more knowledge, more power. Um when employees come to know that oh, but there's a lift on compensation, they're just gonna try it, they're just gonna wing it. And as you say, actually, higher earners may have been disincentivised to bring a claim because they knew actually, in reality, we're not gonna recover full financial losses. Yeah, but now there's more scope to do that, so they may be more willing to push the employer on that point.

Claire Taylor-Evans: 16:56
Yeah. But they have the government has said, haven't they, that they are committing to put in place or undertake an impact assessment before this comes in. And I I don't know quite how that will look, but they are going to look in how into how that impacts on businesses.

Harjeet Nangla: 17:13
Yeah, so this is an aspect that's still up and subject to consultation, so we may find that there may be some movement and and change on it, but as it stands, all indications are that this cap is lifted and we'll have to see how it plays out. Watch this space, as they say. If I had to give one tip to employers in the implementation of the Employment Rights Bill, Soon to Be Act, is to me as an employment lawyer, it feels a little bit similar to how I felt when the Data Protection Act in 2018 was introduced. This fear of, oh my gosh, I don't know how to manage this, I don't know how to implement the changes that were being brought in. And I really do think this is one of those projects where you need a committee or a working group to be the point of contact and plan that implementation because, as I said, it's a phased implementation, so it's a work in progress, yeah, and it will you will have to, as a business, keep an eye on it. It's also important to recognise that this isn't just HR, this is actually cross-business functions. So you've got HR, you've got payroll, you've got legal, you've got finance, and you've got IT. And I think everybody needs to be on board to help with a successful implementation of those rights. So if you there's time now, I would say, to create that working group, create the group, and then the natural step from that would be to carry out an audit. Yeah. Audit where the gaps are in your business, what current standards are you meeting at the moment, and how does it differ to what the bill is proposing, and address it so you've got a focus plan and you know what you're addressing and when you're doing it.

Claire Taylor-Evans: 18:53
Yeah. No, I think that's fantastic advice. So at least we've got some clarity now on the employment rights bill and a plan, I think, for the implementation. So coming in at number three on HR's Christmas wish list, and I'm sorry this isn't a very festive topic, but it is a reality of what we're seeing in practice, isn't it, Haji? Is unfortunately with the current economic uncertainty, we are seeing many organizations making going through restructuring exercises or making reductions in force and redundancy decisions. And what we often see is businesses getting into difficulty where there is a number creep from the original proposal for headcount reduction, which of course can trigger collective redundancy obligations. And just as a reminder, if you're proposing to dismiss 20 or more employees at one establishment as redundant within a 90 day period, this triggers additional consultation obligations under employment law. And those are that you have to consult for a minimum. Of 30 days before the first dismissal takes effect for 20 or more, and for 45 days for 100 or more. And what we often see in practice is that if HR aren't involved in executive leadership decisions at an early stage, then they don't necessarily have oversight of when these numbers creep up and when that obligation is triggered. And it's really quite important because, as we know, in addition to the minimum consultation obligations, there's also an obligation to notify the Secretary of State, which is now on a digital form HR1. And there's criminal liability if employers don't adhere to those obligations.

Harjeet Nangla: 20:44
Claire, do you find that the issue around not complying with those requirements comes because of a lack of planning? Or is it like shooting from the hip when it comes to redundancy decisions? Or is it a well thought-out process, but they've just got caught out?

Claire Taylor-Evans: 20:59
I think it's a bit of a combination of all of those, to be honest. I mean, certainly what I see is, for example, you know, an employer might say, right, we've had to lose a small amount of people, say now in December, say five or so, but then we've had a couple of settlement agreements as well. And of course, they might not have necessarily realized that settlement agreements, if they're unrelated obviously to the particular circumstances of the employee, would also count towards those numbers for the threshold of 20 collective redundancies. And then they might plan a further, I don't know, 10 redundancies in January or February. And of course, looking at that rolling 90-day period, which we've always got to be mindful of, looking forward and back from each dismissal, then they they can get caught out. And I think that's something that really employers need to have a real system in place to make sure that they're A, involved in the management decisions and that they have a voice at the table and are letting senior leaders know about these potential risks and alerting them to it. But secondly, having a tracker in place, an effective tracker, to make sure that they are keeping an eye on whether these thresholds are actually triggered.

Harjeet Nangla: 22:11
Can I ask Claire? So you referred to terminations under a settlement agreement falling within the scope of collective consultation numbers. Does the same apply if there's a voluntary redundancy program?

Claire Taylor-Evans: 22:23
Yes, yes, it does. And I think again, that's perhaps an area where there is a little bit of uncertainty. But yes, absolutely, voluntary redundancies would also fall into the threshold numbers. Also, it's it's very important to make sure that you're complying with these obligations because obviously now the penalty for failure to comply is 90 days potentially per employee gross pay.

Harjeet Nangla: 22:49
And then under the bill it moves double liability to 180 days. Absolutely. And it's based on actual pay. So unfair dismissal, weekly pay is capped, but there's no such cap on weekly pay for protective awards. So the failure of non-compliance has been amped up significantly for employers. Yeah, absolutely.

Claire Taylor-Evans: 23:12
So we've covered a lot there on HR's Christmas wish list and obviously some ideas of things to think about and what's coming further down the line. But we will be obviously running webinars and some training on this and other areas of the Employment Rights Bill or Employment Rights Act as and when it is coming into force. We are expecting a lot of consultations on this, so please do feed into those and do keep an eye out for our invitations and newsletters. So that's a wrap on 2025. Thanks very much for Haji. It's been a really great discussion. Thank you, Claire. It's been an absolute pleasure. So all that remains for me to say is here it is. Merry Christmas. I hope you have a wonderful festive break and see you all in 2026.