Half of Employers Send Managers Into Probation Decisions With No Training, Survey Finds
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The News
More than half (52.9%) of employers do not provide any training for managers on handling probationary periods, according to a survey of 155 employers by law firm Birketts, reported by People Management on 23 July. Only 36.1% offer such training. The findings come ahead of the introduction of unfair dismissal protections after six months of employment and uncapped compensation under the Employment Rights Act, expected to take effect on 1 January 2027. A separate Birketts survey of 140 employers found 44% had faced unfair dismissal claims in the past 12 months. Nearly 44% of employers currently set probation periods at six months or longer — meaning terminations at the end of probation could fall inside the new qualification period. Sonya O'Reilly, partner at Birketts, said the new rights would place 'much greater scrutiny' on how employers manage new hires.
Why It Matters
When the unfair dismissal qualifying period drops from two years to six months on 1 January 2027, every probation decision becomes a legally reviewable decision. A manager who lets someone go at month five with no documented performance discussion, no training record, and no structured process is creating exposure that didn't exist under the current regime. The fact that over half of employers aren't training managers for this — and that 44% have already faced unfair dismissal claims under the more forgiving two-year rule — suggests a significant readiness gap. TA leaders should be involved because hiring quality and probation management are now the same risk surface: a bad hire that's poorly managed out becomes a tribunal claim, not just a cost.
Taking Action
All action is situated in your corporate context. These are starting points, not prescriptions — choose what fits.
Connect
Who to talk with in your enterprise
Your head of L&D or management development: scope a probation management training module now — covering structured check-ins, documented performance conversations, and the legal threshold for fair dismissal. Target completion before January 2027. Your employment law partner or HR director: review whether your standard probation period length (if six months or more) creates a gap between probation end and the new six-month unfair dismissal qualification. A three-month probation with a two-month extension option is the emerging consensus structure.
Inspect
What to take a closer look at
Pull a sample of 20 probation terminations from the past 12 months. Check each for: (1) documented performance discussions during probation, (2) evidence the manager received any training on probation management, and (3) whether the termination timeline would fall inside the new six-month qualification window. If any of the three are missing across your sample, that's your baseline gap.
Reflect
What to think about more deeply
You spend weeks calibrating assessment centres to avoid a bad hire. How much time do you spend ensuring that hire is managed fairly through probation — the period where a bad decision now becomes a tribunal claim?