Made under the Employment Relations Act 2004
2 statutory instruments made using powers in the Employment Relations Act 2004, newest first. Each one is explained section by section in plain English.
The Trade Unions (Permissible Means of Voting) and Employment Rights (Unfair Dismissal) (Amendment) Order 2026
Expanded trade union balloting methods to include electronic, hybrid, and workplace voting while updating unfair dismissal protections.
This Order amends the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 and the Employment Rights Act 1996 to permit trade unions to conduct elections and industrial action ballots via electronic, hybrid, and workplace voting in addition to traditional postal methods.
It directs a 'responsible person' within the union to determine which voting methods are available for a given ballot based on specific security and accessibility criteria.
The Order applies to trade unions, employers, and independent scrutineers, mandating strict technical standards such as Cyber Essentials Plus certification, data encryption, and the maintenance of comprehensive audit logs.
The Employment Tribunal (Extension of Time Limits) (Miscellaneous Amendments and Transitional Provisions) Regulations 2026
Extended the time limit for presenting various employment tribunal complaints from three months to six months, effective for incidents occurring on or after 1 October 2026.
These Regulations extend the statutory time limits for bringing various employment-related claims before an Employment Tribunal from three months to six months.
The instrument amends specific regulations concerning part-time workers, fixed-term employees, information and consultation rights, blacklisting protection, zero-hours contract exclusivity, and whistleblowing protections in NHS recruitment.
These changes apply to specific acts, failures to act, or the last in a series of such events occurring on or after 1 October 2026 in England, Wales, and Scotland.