CIPD Festival of Work takeaways: Pressure on HR has become operating model risk
At the CIPD Festival of Work, HR leaders described the same patterns of surging employee relations case volumes, complex AI written grievances, rising absence, manager capability gaps and burnout inside HR itself. This HR pressure cooker is close to breaking point, but this is also a chance to act before it boils over to preventable risk.
There is an opportunity to prevent risk earlier through a future-ready employee relations operating model that brings the right support together under one roof to build manager capability and free up internal HR capacity to focus on strategy. To see why that shift matters, start with where the risk is building.
Where is the risk building for HR teams?
Employee relations data is often where operating model risk shows up. As case volumes rise, inexperienced managers delay proactive action, and small issues can quickly become formal action, tribunal risk, reputational damage or productivity loss.
At CIPD, HR leaders talked about that pressure showing up in three clear ways:
- Surging employee relations case volumes leading to constant firefighting
- Complex AI written grievances that are adding to workloads and which HR teams do not yet have playbooks for
- Increasing burnout across the entire business, including HR.
These pressures are connected, and without visibility of timely employee relations metrics, it is hard to pinpoint proactive action.
Wellbeing, employee relations data and manager capability now need to be managed together. The Employment Rights Act makes that need more urgent because it brings more scrutiny to everyday people decisions.
How the Employment Rights Act is changing employee relations risk
The Employment Rights Act raises the bar on processes, documentation and manager decisions. Changes to unfair dismissal, Statutory Sick Pay, enforcement and harassment prevention all point in the same direction. Employers need stronger governance, better manager support, clearer case visibility and legal advice closer to everyday people decisions.
The challenge is whether organisations can apply the law consistently through everyday manager decisions. Without that consistency, risk increases and HR loses time to issues that can be resolved earlier. That is why the ER operating model now matters as much as the policy compliance.
Catch up on our on-demand employment law webinars for practical ways to reduce the risk now. Our Group legal experts have also updated this insightful Employment Rights Act tracker to reflect the June 2026 changes. Download your free copy today to take proactive action and reduce the risk now.
What is a future-ready employee relations operating model?
Traditional HR operating models are breaking under the pressure because they were not built for today’s level of people risk. Case volumes are rising, managers need more support, legal risk is increasing and HR teams are often left piecing together advice, systems and training while still carrying the day-to-day load.
A future-ready employee relations operating model connects:
- Outsourced ER advisory support
- ER case management technology
- Manager coaching and training
- Legal insight around the team.
Robust ER case management technology is central to that visibility. It gives HR leaders data-driven insight into case trends, manager capability gaps, absence patterns, repeat issues and escalation risk, while creating clear audit trails that show decisions were fair, consistent and well documented.
The value is in how capacity, data, manager support and legal confidence work together to reduce pressure at source, improve decision quality and give leaders earlier visibility of people risk.
This is not about replacing internal HR teams. It is about protecting them, so HR can focus on culture, workforce strategy and its own wellbeing while managers get the practical support they need to become more capable people leaders. That shift becomes meaningful when it can be linked to outcomes the business can measure.
The ROI of employee relations outsourcing and technology
The ROI is significant when HR teams can see where risk is building, prove consistency of process and use ER analytics to make better workforce decisions, like addressing manager capability gaps, before issues escalate. These ER case studies show how connected support can translate into measurable outcomes:
- The Body Shop case study shows the value of legally privileged advisory support and outsourced employee relations expertise.
- STARK UK reduced tribunal claims by up to 60% through a stronger employee relations operating model.
- Starbucks UK reduced absence rates by 10% by improving how people issues were managed and supported.
To achieve similar results, the next step is to review where connected support could reduce pressure and risk from escalating in your own employee relations model.
How can HR leaders review employee relations support?
This whitepaper, ‘Employee relations priorities in the new litigious era’, gives practical insights on where to start. To identify where risk is building, where HR capacity can be freed up and where connected support could help the organisation act earlier, employee relations transformation requires focus on five key areas:
- Transforming the ER operating model in the AI era
- Proactively managing probation under new unfair dismissal rules
- Making manager empowerment non-negotiable
- Navigating the politicised workplace with clearer guidance and confidence
- Taking a new approach to wellbeing and beating burnout.
Organisations reviewing their employee relations model now will be better placed to protect people, reduce risk, improve decision quality and keep HR focused on work that moves the business forward.
For HR leaders reviewing their next move, the question is whether the organisation has a strong approach to reduce frontline risk. It’s time to relieve the pressure before the system breaks.
Employee relations done differently
As part of the Empowering People Group, we take a different approach to employee relations. We are not here to act as a call centre or helpdesk. We work as a strategic partner embedded at the heart of your HR team, bringing outsourced employee relations support, technology, manager development and legal insight together under one roof.
If you are reviewing how to reduce pressure on HR, proactively reduce risk and support managers, get in touch to find out how we can accelerate your approach.
Frequently asked questions
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Why is employee relations now a frontline risk?
Employee relations processes now affect legal exposure, workforce wellbeing, manager confidence, operational performance and leadership capacity. Rising case complexity and employment law reform mean organisations need earlier intervention and better visibility of people risk.
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What should a future ready employee relations operating model include?
A future ready model should bring together outsourced employee relations advisory support, empower® ER case management technology, manager coaching, training, legal expertise, legal insight and data driven reporting, so HR is not left managing risk through separate systems and support routes.
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How does employee relations outsourcing protect internal HR teams?
Employee relations outsourcing absorbs case volume, gives managers practical advice before issues escalate and protects internal HR capacity for culture, workforce strategy and higher risk work.
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How can employers reduce employee relations risk earlier?
Employers can reduce risk earlier by giving managers clearer decision support, improving case documentation, using employee relations data to spot patterns and bringing legally privileged support closer to higher risk people decisions.