In brief. Since 1 October 2026 a worker has six months, not three, to start most employment tribunal claims, so a quiet quarter no longer closes a matter and a recruitment agency's files have to last twice as long. Most disputes never reach a tribunal, and the ones that do are usually decided by whether the paperwork was in order. From 30 October 2026 a worker you place can claim against you for harassment by a client's staff or customers unless you took all reasonable steps to prevent it, and where the sexual harassment duty was breached a tribunal can add up to 25 per cent to the award. If an employer loses and does not pay, the Fair Work Agency can send a warning notice and then a financial penalty, and the respondent can be named on a published list. The safe position is the same as ever. Keep clean records, tell workers how to report problems to you, and deal with them early.
Updated 8 October 2026. Rewritten with the question first and a government source for every fact. The six-month time limit is now in force (it was fifteen days away when this page was last updated on 16 September 2026), and the penalty for an unpaid award is stated as the Fair Work Agency publishes it. The award enforcement section was first written on 19 August 2026.
Key facts, each with its source
- The time limit. For acts on or after 1 October 2026 the time limit for bringing a claim to an employment tribunal is six months, up from three. For breach of employment contract claims in Scotland the change takes place on 9 November 2026 (gov.uk, Plan to Make Work Pay and Employment Rights Act timeline update, 25 September 2026).
- Acas comes first. A worker must notify Acas before most claims and is offered early conciliation; when the early conciliation certificate is issued the worker has at least one month left to make the claim (gov.uk, Make a claim to an employment tribunal, before you make a claim).
- Harassment from 30 October 2026. Employers must take all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment of their employees and must not permit the harassment of their employees by third parties (gov.uk timeline update, the 30 October 2026 measures).
- The uplift. Where a tribunal upholds a sexual harassment claim and finds the preventative duty was breached, it may increase the compensation by up to 25 per cent (Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Act 2023, legislation.gov.uk, in force since 26 October 2024).
- An unpaid award. Once 42 days have passed since the judgment, the worker can ask the Fair Work Agency to act. The respondent receives a warning notice and has 28 days to respond; if it does not, the agency may issue a financial penalty of 50 per cent of the unpaid award, at least £100 and no more than £5,000, paid to the government, with the award still owed in full, and the respondent can be named on a list the government may publish (gov.uk, Employment tribunal penalty enforcement and naming scheme, Fair Work Agency, published 10 June 2026).
- Court enforcement. The worker can also use the Fast Track scheme in England and Wales to send a High Court enforcement officer, or register the award as a County Court judgment, and in Scotland use a sheriff officer with an extract of the judgment (gov.uk, If you win your case).
- The records that decide it. Minimum wage records must be kept for six years (gov.uk, Employers and the minimum wage); since 6 April 2026 annual leave and holiday pay records must be kept for six years (Acas, Employment Rights Act 2025); an employment business must produce the records the Conduct Regulations require by the end of the second business day after a Fair Work Agency inspector asks (gov.uk, Record keeping for employment agencies and businesses).
- From 1 January 2027. The qualifying period for unfair dismissal falls to six months for dismissals from 1 January 2027 and the compensatory award is uncapped, which reaches an agency's own staff and any temporary workers it employs directly (gov.uk timeline update, the January 2027 measures).
Where disputes come from on a recruitment desk
Most agency disputes are about money and paperwork. Unpaid or wrongly calculated wages, holiday pay, unclear terms, arguments about who the employer really is, and problems when an assignment ends. The Fair Work Agency can now enforce several of these rights directly, and the government's naming round of 3 September 2026 listed around 660 employers for minimum wage underpayment, including businesses that supply staff (gov.uk news, 3 September 2026).
The six-month time limit, in force since 1 October 2026
Until 1 October 2026 a worker usually had three months, less one day, to start a tribunal claim. For acts on or after that date the limit is six months for most claim types, under the Employment Rights Act 2025. Acts before the date keep the old limit. For breach of contract claims heard in Scotland the change arrives on 9 November 2026. Acas early conciliation still comes first and still pauses the clock, and a worker who receives the certificate always has at least a month left to claim.
Two practical effects. You may hear about a claim long after the people involved have moved on, so a quiet three months no longer means a matter is closed. And the evidence has to survive longer and still make sense. A client's timesheet system that overwrites records after 90 days is not your defence. Your own copy is.
From 30 October 2026, harassment claims that reach the agency
From 30 October 2026 employers must take all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment of their employees, and must not permit harassment of their employees by third parties. For Equality Act purposes a worker you engage under a contract to do work personally is your employee, and the client's staff, customers, patients and visitors are third parties to you. So a temp harassed on a client's site can bring the claim against you, and you are liable unless you can show you took all reasonable steps. The client has its own duties to your worker as a contract worker, so responsibility is shared. Shared is not the same as someone else's.
Where a tribunal upholds a sexual harassment claim and finds the preventative duty was breached, it can increase compensation by up to 25 per cent. For an agency, all reasonable steps means a risk assessment by site type, a policy that covers third parties, workers told at onboarding how to report to you directly, client terms that require the client to report incidents and accept a worker's removal without a fee, an incident log, and training for the consultants who receive reports.
What a tribunal actually looks at
A tribunal decides on evidence, not impressions. For most agency claims it comes down to eight documents. The terms and the Key Information Document, the pay records, the right to work check with its date, the assignment details and timesheets, the client terms in force that day, any complaint and your written reply, and a note of why the assignment ended and who decided. Complete, dated and consistent, and most claims are weak. Missing or contradictory, and even a fair employer can struggle.
The 15-minute file audit
Pull one live assignment file and one from an assignment that ended in the last six months, the new length of the tail. Tick the eight documents against each. Then pick a worker at random and produce their pay record for one pay reference period, hours and pay, as a single document. Time it. The minimum wage rules require exactly that on request, and the records must be kept for at least six years. Two ticks out of eight and a twenty-minute search is a normal first result. It is also the gap a claim would walk through.
What happens when an award is not paid
If an employer loses and does not pay, the enforcement route runs through the Fair Work Agency. Once 42 days have passed since the judgment, the worker can ask the agency to act. The employer receives a warning notice and has 28 days to respond. If it does not, the agency may issue a financial penalty of half the unpaid award, between £100 and £5,000, paid to the government, and the award itself is still owed in full. The worker can ask for the employer to be named on a list of respondents who have not paid, which may be published on gov.uk, and can still go to court to enforce payment. An unpaid award costs half again, puts your name on a public list, and does not go away.
How to stay out of the tribunal in the first place
Three habits prevent most claims. Put the terms in writing before the assignment starts. Keep pay and holiday records that add up and that you could hand over at short notice. And deal with complaints early and in writing. A fix at week one is far cheaper than a claim at month five, and the limit now runs to six.
Questions people ask
How long does a worker have to bring an employment tribunal claim in 2026?
Six months for most claims where the act complained of happened on or after 1 October 2026, up from three months. Breach of contract claims in Scotland move to six months on 9 November 2026. The worker must notify Acas first, and the early conciliation period pauses the clock. Source, the government's Employment Rights Act timeline update of 25 September 2026.
Does the six-month limit apply to something that happened before 1 October 2026?
No. Acts before 1 October 2026 keep the old three-month limit. The new limit applies to acts on or after that date, which is why an agency's files from October 2026 onwards need to last at least six months after an assignment ends, plus the time a claim takes to arrive.
Can a temp bring a harassment claim against the agency for what a client's employee did?
From 30 October 2026, yes, unless the agency can show it took all reasonable steps to prevent it. Employers must not permit the harassment of their employees by third parties, and for Equality Act purposes a worker engaged under a contract to do work personally is the agency's employee. The client has its own duties to the same worker as a contract worker.
What happens if an employer does not pay a tribunal award?
After 42 days the worker can ask the Fair Work Agency to act. The employer gets a warning notice and 28 days to respond, then a financial penalty of 50 per cent of the unpaid award, between £100 and £5,000, paid to the government, with the award still owed. The employer can be named on a published list, and the worker can enforce through the courts. Source, gov.uk, Employment tribunal penalty enforcement and naming scheme.
Which documents decide an agency's case?
Eight. The terms of engagement and the Key Information Document, the pay records, the dated right to work check, the assignment details and timesheets, the client terms in force on the day, any complaint and the written reply, and a note of why the assignment ended and who decided. Complete, dated and consistent is the whole defence.
Sources
Plan to Make Work Pay and Employment Rights Act, timeline update (gov.uk, updated 25 September 2026). Make a claim to an employment tribunal (gov.uk). Employment tribunal penalty enforcement and naming scheme (Fair Work Agency, gov.uk, published 10 June 2026). Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Act 2023 (legislation.gov.uk). Employers and the minimum wage (gov.uk). Record keeping for employment agencies and businesses (gov.uk). Employment Rights Act 2025 (Acas). Nearly 660 employers announced as failing to pay the minimum wage (gov.uk news, 3 September 2026).
This guide is general information, not legal advice. For your own contracts, processes and any live dispute, take advice from your own solicitor before relying on it. BIOR accepts no responsibility for any loss arising from use of this guide.
For members
BIOR Agency Members hold the Agency Compliance Pack in the member library, with the harassment clauses for client terms and the Fair Work Agency audit workbook that this page's file audit is drawn from, the Preventing Harassment at Work policy and client-site guide, and Ask BIOR for the question a live dispute raises. The Employment Rights Act timeline, the 12-point compliance check, the agency workers guide and the umbrella guide sit beside this page on the hub. BIOR membership includes the certification assessment. Pass it and you are certified for five years. See Agency Membership. Choosing an agency? Check any recruiter at ior.org/certified.
Written by The BIOR Membership Team. Last reviewed 8 October 2026 against gov.uk and legislation.gov.uk.