The rules on unfair dismissal are changing—and the impact on employers is significant.

From 2027, employees will be able to claim unfair dismissal after just 6 months’ service, with wider rights and increased potential compensation.

That means probation is no longer a low-risk period—it’s a critical window.

In this session, Martin Grady, Managing Director, The Thrive Team and Richard Hiron, Employment Lawyer bring together two essential perspectives:

• How to get recruitment right from the outset
• How to manage probation fairly and defensibly
• You’ll leave with practical steps to reduce hiring risk, improve early performance management, and avoid costly tribunal claims.

Who this is for

This webinar is designed for:

• HR professionals and in-house people teams
• Business owners and founders making hiring decisions
• Line managers responsible for performance and probation reviews
• Anyone involved in recruitment who wants to reduce early-stage hiring risk

About the Hosts

Martin Grady – Managing Director, The Thrive Team

Martin Grady is a co‑founder of The Thrive Team and an experienced search, selection and leadership development professional. With a background spanning the Royal Navy, senior HR and talent acquisition roles, and executive search, Martin

brings a practical, process‑driven approach to helping organisations build high‑performing, resilient leadership teams. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Recruitment Professionals and an EMCC‑accredited coach.

Richard Hiron, also known as ‘The Hironator’, employment law solicitor.

Richard trained to become a solicitor and qualified into that profession, before making a slight sideways move mid-career into the realm of HR alongside his legal career, seeing first-hand how practicalities and the law can work together to achieve workable solutions. Stepping fully back into his legal career, he now brings that focus on practical solutions that respect the law to businesses (he has a particular fondness for regulated businesses as, being regulated as well, he can relate to how they have to do much more than just follow the law), HR professionals, and employees alike.

Event details

Date: 20 May

Time: 1:00–2:00pm (UK time)

Format: Live Zoom webinar with Q&A

Cost: Free

Replay: Yes – recording sent to all registrants