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Jobs & Business

Employment rights

Boots pharmacy shopfront with a green cross and pharmacy sign on a London street

Sick pay in the UK in 2026: paid from day one, up to £123.25 a week

Since 6 April 2026 the three unpaid waiting days are gone and the earnings threshold has been scrapped: SSP is available to every eligible employee. The rate is 80% of average weekly earnings or £123.25 a week, whichever is lower, for up to 28 weeks. Who qualifies, when you need a fit note, what the self-employed can claim and where to complain if an employer refuses.

20 September 2026
The glass entrance to the UBS office building in London with revolving doors

Made redundant in the UK: how much you are owed and what to do if you are on a work visa

The statutory maximum is £22,530: £751 per week of service, up to 20 years, and only after two years in the job. The first £30,000 is tax free. And if you are on a Skilled Worker visa, redundancy leaves you 60 days or the remainder of your visa, whichever is shorter. Here is what you are owed, by when, and where to get free advice.

15 September 2026
A sunny street of office buildings in the City of London

Working in England 2026: what jobs pay, what you keep, and how the work visa actually starts

The minimum wage in England is £12.71 an hour by law; median full-time pay is £39,039 a year, worth about £2,630 a month after tax. You can start work before your National Insurance number arrives, but never without the right to work. And the Skilled Worker visa starts with a sponsoring employer: £41,700 or your occupation’s going rate, whichever is higher.

10 September 2026
Shoppers at the self-service checkouts of a British supermarket

October: employers start answering for how customers behave

From 30 October part of the Employment Rights Act 2025 takes effect: employers must take “all reasonable steps” against sexual harassment and become liable for harassment by third parties — customers, visitors, contractors. And from 1 October the tribunal time limit rises from three months to six.

7 September 2026