Summer 2026: Eight potential issues for HR

by Stephen Simpson, Brightmine Principal Editor – Employment Law and Compliance

HR professionals in the UK face some unique challenges and employment issues in the summer of 2026. These include increased uncertainty over workers’ annual leave plans because of world events; public transport disruption leading to attendance issues; and a heatwave meaning that employers should monitor workplace temperatures to ensure that they do not become unreasonable. It is also a World Cup year, which brings its own specific problems around absence, holiday and conduct.

1. Workers may need to cancel/amend annual leave if holiday plans change

In the summer of 2026, there are external factors that could lead to UK workers needing to change their holiday plans at short notice. These factors include:

• the closure of airspace because of conflicts;
• flight cancellations because of disruption to airlines’ jet fuel supplies; and
• reluctance to travel to certain countries because of the political situation or disease outbreaks.

From a legal standpoint, the employer holds most of the cards: there is not much that a worker can do if their employer is not willing to agree to cancel or amend annual leave already booked.

The main exception to this is where the worker has the contractual right to cancel or amend holiday, under their contract of employment or another relevant agreement.

From a good practice point of view, it is important that the employer balances both the needs of the business and the worker’s personal circumstances. For example, some workers may find themselves thousands of pounds out of pocket if they cannot adjust their holiday plans.

It is therefore good workforce relations and beneficial to workforce wellbeing to be flexible with annual leave requests, where business needs allow.

2. Employers need to prepare for potential World Cup disruption

The 2026 World Cup football tournament takes place over the summer. The tournament, which is being co-hosted by the US, Mexico and Canada, begins on 11 June and ends on 19 July.

There will be high levels of interest among the workforce, particularly given that:

• both England and Scotland have qualified; and
• there are 48 teams taking part, meaning that large portions of foreign nationals within the workforce will be supporting their own nations.

Employers need to think about:

• increasing working hours flexibility during the tournament, especially with some games taking place late night/early morning UK time;
• dealing with a higher number of holiday requests during the tournament;
• maintaining productivity during matches, since members of the workforce might become distracted if they have a match on while they should be working (including remote workers);
• being aware of the risk of discrimination, particularly if favouritism is shown to English and Scottish fans over other nationalities or if football “banter” between rival fans crosses the line and becomes harassment; and
• reminding employees of their responsibilities outside work, with matches being shown in public places such as pubs and fan parks.

3. Tricky bank holiday issues arise every summer

Bank holidays can create a myriad of issues for employers. In the UK, the 2026 summer bank holidays are on:

• Monday 15 June (in Scotland only);
• Monday 13 July (in Northern Ireland only);
• Monday 3 August (in Scotland only); and
• Monday 31 August 2026 (in England, Wales and Northern Ireland – but not Scotland).

Two key questions that often come up for HR are:

• Is there an automatic right for staff to take bank holidays off? No – any right to time off depends on the terms of the employee’s contract of employment. For example, contracts of employment may:
  • give workers their annual leave entitlement, plus time off on bank holidays as an additional contractual right; or
  • require workers to work, unless they take the bank holiday as annual leave.
• Is there an automatic right to extra pay for working on bank holidays? No – any extra pay, such as time and a half or double time, depends on the worker’s contractual terms.

Employers in Scotland have a specific issue in 2026, with an additional 10th public holiday of the year on Monday 15 June, which is the day after Scotland’s opening game at the World Cup.

The employer’s approach to the additional day off is again dependent on the wording in contracts of employment:

• Contractually entitled to the day off: Contract states that annual leave entitlement is a certain number of days plus bank holidays.
• Not contractually entitled to the day off: Contract states that annual leave entitlement is a certain number of days plus a specified number of bank holidays (nine in Scotland normally).
• Not contractually entitled to the day off: Contract states that annual leave entitlement is a certain number of days but is silent on the issue of bank holidays.

Of course, it is good employee relations to grant workers the day off if business needs allow. This is particularly the case here, given the rarity of Scotland qualifying (first appearance since 1998) and the timing of the game (2 am on the morning of Monday 15 June).

4. School holidays: Support staff with children struggling with work-life balance

The school summer holidays are perennially a time when staff with children struggle to balance childcare responsibilities and work. They may look for increased flexibility with their working patterns over the summer.

Where business needs permit, it is a good idea for employers to allow employees with childcare responsibilities to make use of flexible working to cope during the summer holidays.

With the widespread advent of remote working, some employers may be able to allow their workforce mostly to work from home, in which case it may help homeworkers to be flexible with working hours.

Many employers will have hybrid working arrangements in place, which should also assist employees with children.

Some employees may make flexible working requests. If it suits the employer’s operational needs, there is no reason why it cannot agree to temporary flexible working arrangements over the summer to help employees with their personal lives.

5. Travel disruption: Transport problems likely to arise

Threats of industrial action on public transport in the UK continue into the summer, including on the London Underground.

Elsewhere, travel in Europe is expected to be disrupted this summer, including a general strike in Portugal (on 3 June) and airport/aviation strikes into June in France, Spain and Italy.

Flight cancellations will continue, driven by the closure of airspace because of conflicts and disruption to airlines’ jet fuel supplies.

Potentially volatile summer weather exacerbated by climate change, including the risk of flooding, could also be a factor.

What is the legal position if employees cannot get to work because of public transport disruption or being stranded abroad?

In principle, an employer could refuse to pay an employee who misses work for any of these reasons. An employee who is not working during their contractual hours is not fulfilling their contract of employment, and so the employer does not have to pay them.

This remains the position even if the employee’s lateness or non-attendance is out of their control.

However, it is good practice for employers to take a pragmatic approach, even if the law favours them in this scenario. Employers should consider whether they could make use of flexible working by asking the employee to make up the time later. Taking the time missed as annual leave is another option.

In practice, simply not paying the employee should be a last resort.

6. Employers must tackle high workplace temperatures

Global temperatures are continuing to rise, with UK heat records already being broken in May 2026 (up to 35°C in some places). More extreme weather could be on the way this summer, with predictions of a rare “Super El Niño” event that could push temperatures up again.

Surprisingly, there is currently no UK law on maximum working temperatures.

However, during working hours the temperature in all indoor workplaces must be “reasonable”. What is reasonable will depend on the nature of the workplace and the activities undertaken.

During a heatwave, employers should monitor the workplace and ensure that temperatures do not become unreasonable.

Employers should follow HSE guidance, which includes a list of measures to prevent the workforce from overheating. These measures include:

• providing fans;
• relaxing dress codes; and
• allowing employees to take extra breaks.

7. Relax dress codes in the summer heat

Employers are quite within their rights to set standards on what it is appropriate for employees to wear to work.

However, it is important that a dress code avoids overly prescriptive requirements and is applied sensitively and flexibly. Employers may wish to relax dress codes over the summer or during specific periods of very hot weather.

According to our last dress code survey (published in November 2024), expectations of attire can differ drastically by job role, with those in senior roles and customer-facing roles normally held to a higher standard.

While many organisations operate either smart-casual or relaxed dress codes, certain garments remain frowned upon at work. Our research found that flip-flops and shorts are among the items most likely to be prohibited by organisations.

Our research also showed that appearance during remote meetings has become an issue for certain employers. Some employers insist that employees working from home don professional attire (or are at least presentable) during remote meetings. Here, wearing pyjamas or dressing gowns is often seen as an unacceptable liberty.

8. Work experience schemes are more important than ever

Every summer, employers across the UK run work experience programmes for school children and students.

Work experience schemes can offer young people a way to get into the world of work. This is more important than ever in 2026, given that unemployment figures show that youth joblessness continues to be high.

While the main purpose of work experience placements is to further the student’s personal development, employers can benefit too. For instance, work experience can create an early talent pipeline for the organisation and improve its image in the community, as part of an ESG strategy.

However, work experience schemes come with their challenges. For example, employers need to consider whether a school child or student should be paid the national minimum wage during work experience: generally, the answer is no.

There are also more generous provisions on daily rest, weekly rest, rest breaks and maximum weekly working time for young workers, as well as strict rules on night work.