New Regulations Come Into Force, Including Surprise Duty to Keep Holiday Records for Six Years

Nikki Hampson
Solicitor
View Profile

Last week, the Government published new regulations which will enable a number of changes to the law under the Employment Rights Act 2025 to come into effect.

The regulations contained the expected provisions to allow the following to happen on 6 April 2026:

• Where an employer is making enough redundancies that the obligation to collectively consult is engaged, the maximum award for failing to fulfil their collective consultation obligations is doubling from 90 days’ pay to 180 days’ pay. There is no cap on the amount of a day’s pay for this purpose.
• Disclosing sexual harassment will now amount to whistleblowing, meaning that employees who disclose sexual harassment to their employer have extra protection against dismissal and detriment.
• Changes to the law making it easier for trade unions to obtain statutory recognition will become effective.

An unexpected change is also coming into effect on 6 April 2026. From that date, employers will be obliged to keep records of holidays taken by employees for a period of six years. Therefore, if it has been your practice until now to destroy such records within a shorter timescale, you should cease this practice.

If you have any questions about how these changes may affect your business or organisation, or if we can provide support or assistance on any other employment law matter, please do not hesitate to contact a member of the team on 0141 331 5150.

Topics: collective consultation, Employment Rights Act, Holidays, Protective award, Regulations, Sexual harassment, Statutory recognition, Trade Unions, Whistleblowing