Now the April Employment Law Changes Are in Force: What Small Businesses Should Check Next

The April 2026 employment law changes are now in force, but many small businesses may still be operating with outdated policies, payroll settings or staff handbooks.

If you employ staff — or plan to soon — now is a sensible time to check whether your day-to-day processes match the new rules.

For start-ups and small businesses, employment law changes are not just an HR issue. They can affect payroll, sickness absence, family leave, onboarding, record-keeping, management processes and how workplace concerns are handled.

The important thing now is not to panic. It is to review your current setup and make sure your business is not relying on old assumptions.

Why this matters now

A number of employment law changes came into force in April 2026. These included changes to Statutory Sick Pay, paternity leave, unpaid parental leave, bereavement-related leave, collective redundancy penalties, whistleblowing protection and holiday pay records.

The Fair Work Agency also launched in April 2026, bringing together enforcement of key employment rights.

For many small businesses, the risk is not deliberate non-compliance. It is having old documents, informal processes or outdated payroll settings that no longer match the current rules.

That is why now is a good time to carry out a simple employment law health check.

1. Check your sickness absence process

Statutory Sick Pay has changed, so your sickness absence process may need updating.

If your current policy still refers to waiting days, minimum earnings thresholds or older SSP rules, it may now be out of date.

Small businesses should check:

• how sickness absence is reported

• how SSP is calculated

• whether payroll settings have been updated

• whether managers understand the current process

• whether staff know who to contact when they are off sick

This is especially important for businesses where absence is still managed informally through texts, WhatsApp messages or verbal updates.

2. Review your payroll settings

Employment law changes often create practical payroll issues.

Even if your payroll provider or accountant handles the calculations, the business still needs to make sure the right information is being recorded and passed on.

You should check whether your payroll process reflects the latest statutory rates and rules for:

• Statutory Sick Pay

• statutory paternity pay

• statutory maternity pay

• statutory adoption pay

• statutory shared parental pay

• statutory parental bereavement pay

You should also make sure that payroll, HR records and employee files all match.

For example, if someone takes leave, is off sick or changes working arrangements, the evidence should be recorded clearly and consistently.

3. Update your family leave policies

Paternity leave and unpaid parental leave are now available from the first day of employment.

This means small businesses should not assume that newer employees are automatically excluded from these types of leave.

However, there is an important distinction between leave and pay. For example, entitlement to paternity leave may begin from day one, but statutory paternity pay still has separate eligibility rules.

Your policies should clearly explain:

• who can request leave

• how requests should be made

• what notice is required

• whether statutory pay applies

• what evidence may be needed

• how the business will respond to requests

This is an area where unclear wording can easily create confusion.

4. Add a clear process for bereavement-related leave

Bereaved Partner’s Paternity Leave is now in force.

This applies in very specific and sensitive circumstances, but even small businesses should have a clear process for handling these situations properly.

The priority should be compassion, clarity and consistency.

Your business should know:

• who an employee should contact

• how the request will be handled

• what leave may be available

• what pay may apply

• how records will be kept

• how the employee will be supported

This is not the kind of issue a business wants to deal with for the first time during a crisis.

5. Review your staff handbook

If you have a staff handbook, now is a good time to review it.

If you do not have one, this may be the point where your business needs to put a simple one in place.

Your handbook should reflect how your business actually operates, but it should also be aligned with current employment rules.

Key areas to check include:

• sickness absence

• paternity leave

• unpaid parental leave

• parental bereavement leave

• holiday entitlement

• holiday pay

• whistleblowing

• anti-harassment

• disciplinary procedures

• grievance procedures

• flexible working

• record-keeping

For founder-led businesses, a staff handbook does not need to be overly complicated. But it does need to be clear, practical and up to date.

6. Check how holiday is recorded

Holiday records are another area where small businesses can easily fall behind.

If holiday is being tracked through informal messages, verbal agreements or a basic spreadsheet with no clear audit trail, it may be time to improve the process.

You should be able to show:

• how much holiday each employee is entitled to

• how much holiday has been taken

• how holiday pay has been calculated

• whether any holiday has been carried forward

• what was approved and when

• who approved it

Good record-keeping protects both the business and the employee.

It also makes life easier if there is ever a payroll query, dispute or compliance check.

7. Make sure whistleblowing and harassment reporting routes are clear

Sexual harassment disclosures now have stronger whistleblowing protection.

That means businesses need to take reporting routes seriously.

It is not enough to have a policy sitting in a folder that nobody uses. Employees should know how to raise a concern, who they can speak to and what will happen next.

Small businesses should check:

• whether they have an anti-harassment policy

• whether they have a whistleblowing policy

• whether employees know how to report concerns

• whether managers know how to respond

• whether complaints are documented properly

• whether confidentiality is handled correctly

This is especially important in small teams, where personal relationships can make formal processes feel uncomfortable. Clear processes help protect everyone involved.

8. Train managers and anyone handling staff issues

In many small businesses, the owner, founder, practice manager, office manager or operations lead handles people issues.

That person does not need to be an employment lawyer, but they do need to understand the basics.

Anyone managing staff should know:

• what has changed

• what requests employees may be entitled to make

• what should be recorded

• when to ask for advice

• how to avoid making decisions based on old rules

• how to handle sensitive issues fairly

A policy is only useful if the people applying it understand what it says.

9. Check your contracts and onboarding documents

If you are hiring, your employment contracts and onboarding documents should also be reviewed.

This is particularly important if your templates have not been updated for a while or if you have copied documents from another business.

You should check whether your contracts and onboarding documents properly cover:

• job title and duties

• working hours

• pay

• holiday entitlement

• sickness absence

• probation periods

• notice periods

• confidentiality

• data protection

• policies and procedures

• place of work

• pension arrangements

Getting this right at the start of employment is usually much easier than trying to fix problems later.

10. Prepare for further employment law changes

The April 2026 changes are not the end of the story.

Further employment law reforms are expected across 2026 and 2027, including changes linked to unfair dismissal rights.

For small businesses, this means employment compliance should not be treated as a one-off task.

It is better to build a simple review process now, so your documents, systems and policies can be updated as the rules continue to change.

What small businesses should do now

If you employ staff, or expect to hire soon, start with a practical review.

You do not need to overcomplicate it. Focus on the areas that create the biggest day-to-day risk.

A simple employment law health check should include:

• reviewing your employment contracts

• updating your staff handbook

• checking sickness absence wording

• checking family leave policies

• reviewing payroll settings

• improving holiday records

• checking whistleblowing and harassment reporting routes

• making sure managers understand the changes

• checking onboarding documents

• planning for further changes in 2027

The goal is not just to comply with the law. It is to build a business that is organised, fair and easier to manage as it grows.

Final thought

Employment law changes can feel overwhelming, especially for small businesses without a dedicated HR team.

But the biggest risk is often not the change itself. It is continuing to run the business using old documents, old processes and old assumptions.

Now the April changes are in force, this is a good time to check whether your business is properly set up.

A small amount of time spent reviewing your policies, payroll process and staff records now can help avoid confusion, disputes and unnecessary stress later.

If you need support reviewing your employment documents, payroll processes or business systems, Launch Start-Up can help you put the right foundations in place.