2025 tested every employee relations team.
Regulatory shifts, legal uncertainty, political turbulence and economic volatility created a landscape where reaction was often the default.
“Employee relations has changed because the workplace has changed,” says Deb Muller, Founder and CEO of HR Acuity. Teams are being asked to do more than resolve cases. Instead, they’re expected to spot trends, mitigate risk and guide organizational strategy — often without any additional headcount.
That’s a big lift, but the right tools and processes make it achievable. This guide will show you how.
Part 1: AI Becomes Invisible Infrastructure
In 2026, AI will become invisible infrastructure, quietly embedded across your employee relations work.
From intake and interview support to case summaries that align stakeholders, AI will be seamlessly integrated into nearly every step of the process.
The key word here is support. AI simply can’t replicate the judgment, experience and decision-making ability of your team. AI is a helper, not a replacement — enabling you to work smarter, more consistently and with lower risk.
“I describe employee relations using a traffic light paradigm,” explains Deb. “Green is setting expectations; yellow is when issues arise, like policy, performance and leaves. Ignoring them leads to red: Fires, allegations, thefts. Employee relations works in the yellow and red zones, aiming to manage yellow better to prevent red.”
Think of AI as an extra set of eyes on the yellow lights: Spotting patterns, summarizing cases and giving your team the context they need to act confidently before small issues become big problems.
As Dianne Frommelt, HR Acuity’s Chief Product Officer, shares:
We’re not replacing what makes an investigator great, we’re augmenting and automating the manual processes that hold them back.
While AI’s potential is clear, not every organization has embraced it yet — but that’s changing quickly. The Ninth Annual Employee Relations Benchmark Study found that, in 2024, 44% of organizations had no AI initiatives in progress. Expect that number to drop sharply in the research produced by HR Acuity in the upcoming years. AI adoption is accelerating, and it’s going to become a standard part of the employee relations workflow.
⇨ Further Reading: Want to learn more about how AI will become invisible infrastructure this year? Check out this blog.
Part Two: Regulatory Changes Become the New Normal
If you’re still processing the sheer volume of change 2025 brought with a new administration and a wave of shifting regulations, you’re not alone.
In 2026, adaptability and flexibility are more essential than ever before. The more resilient your processes, the better prepared you’ll be to respond when new regulations and expectations come up.
This is also a challenging time for your employees. Regulations that impact them both professionally and personally can have a real impact on their quality of life. For example, uncertainty or fear about immigration status, along with unclear EEOC protections and equal opportunity expectations, can create added stress.
But don’t forget: You’ve successfully navigated the last few years, which have been anything but regular. You have the expertise and experience to handle this.
As Deb says,
Regulations will always change. We’ve built the agility to handle it, through COVID-19 and beyond. Now, this is just how we operate.
Even though times may be chaotic, your organization’s values can — and should — stay steady.
The organizations that will thrive through this era of constant change are the ones that understand this balance — those that stay grounded in purpose, flexible in execution and confident in navigating whatever comes next.
⇨ Further Reading: Curious how regulatory changes are shaping the new normal? Check out this blog.
Part Three: Teams Begin to Address Employee Relations Burnout
Let’s be honest: Employee relations involves emotionally taxing work.
Every day, employee relations professionals navigate some of the most sensitive and challenging situations employees face — from accommodations requests to discrimination, harassment or retaliation reports and beyond. Employee relations teams provide guidance, support and perspective when it matters most, all while balancing organizational priorities and compliance requirements.
This work demands emotional intelligence, resilience and the ability to stay grounded and fair, but it can take a real toll if burnout isn’t addressed. And we think that in 2026, it’s high time to do so.
The demands on employee relations teams are growing, but resources aren’t keeping pace. According to HR Acuity’s Employee Relations Benchmark Study, staffing levels have remained largely flat for more than six years, even as case complexity and employee expectations have continued to rise. That mismatch leaves many employee relations professionals stretched thin, working long hours and navigating high-stakes situations without sufficient support. Recognizing this trend and addressing it proactively is essential for sustaining a high-performing, resilient employee relations team that can meet the demands of today’s workplace.
⇨ Further Reading: Get practical tips for addressing employee relations burnout on our blog.
Part Four: Mental Health Will Continue to Drive Case Complexity and Volume
Workplace stress isn’t new, but the way it shows up in employee relations work is evolving.
In 2026, mental health won’t just influence case numbers — it will shape the very nature of the cases themselves. Employees are bringing more of their whole selves to work, including the personal challenges that affect performance, engagement and well-being. Anxiety, depression, burnout and other mental health concerns are no longer background factors. They are central to many of the conversations employee relations teams have with employees every day.
While overall case volumes are stabilizing, mental health issues tell a different story.
According to the Ninth Annual Employee Relations Benchmark Study, while overall case volumes declined and fewer organizations reported increases across many categories, mental health remained the leading driver of employee issues, continuing the upward trend that began in 2022, though at a slower pace. This confirms what employee relations teams already feel: Mental health will remain a key driver of case volume.
For the third year, organizations cited mental health challenges as the leading factor behind employee issues. Stress and uncertainty keep these cases prominent, often adding complexity that affects performance, accommodations, and team dynamics.
Looking ahead, employee relations teams should expect mental health to remain a defining factor in case complexity and volume, requiring continued focus, resources and strategies to support employees and maintain organizational trust in 2026.
⇨ Further Reading: Explore how mental health influences case complexity this year and beyond on our blog.
Part Five: Employee Relations Gains Recognition as Leadership’s Strategic Partner
Economic shifts, workforce changes and political turbulence will make employee signals more important than ever.
In 2026, employee relations will be put squarely in the spotlight, much like during the COVID-19 era. Employee relations teams will be the “diagnostic partner,” spotting stress points early and helping leaders stabilize the organization.
As Sara Burkhalter, Lead Employee Relations Solutions Consultant at HR Acuity, shares:
In 2026, I see the employee relations function becoming more visible. We’re seeing that organizations and leaders are increasingly recognizing that employee relations has long driven the employee experience behind the scenes — it’s now relied upon for strategic guidance.
Employee relations touches every corner of HR: Benefits, talent, learning and compliance.
No other function sees patterns across performance, accommodations, manager escalations and employee sentiment the way employee relations does. That perspective makes the team essential for informed, strategic decisions.
In 2026, employee relations will need to be proactive. By spotting trends, like rising turnover in a high-performing team, repeated conflicts with a manager or spikes in accommodation requests, employee relations can make a tangible strategic impact. For instance, it can advise leaders early, helping prevent small issues from becoming major disruptions.
Teams that succeed in this shape organizational resilience, influencing workforce planning, leadership development and employee engagement, not just managing individual cases. This insight provides stability and helps the organization act before problems escalate.
⇨ Further Reading: Learn how to position employee relations as a strategic partner on our blog.
Part Six: Employee Relations Will Provide Support Amidst Economic Pressures
The economic outlook for 2026 is uncertain.
Recession risks, tariff challenges, inflation and shifts in unemployment are real — and organizations are facing tough questions about what comes next and how to stay resilient.
In times like these, employee relations has the opportunity to demonstrate its value. Teams must ensure processes are fair, consistent and defensible while maintaining trust with employees that stick around through workforce changes and difficult decisions — including reductions in force (RIFs) or restructuring.
By prioritizing the employee experience and maintaining a clear view of organizational health, employee relations teams can guide organizations through the most challenging moments with thoughtfulness and responsibility. This approach ensures decisions are consistent, fair and defensible.
With accountability embedded at every step, employee relations not only mitigates legal, reputational and operational risk but also signals to employees that the organization values transparency and respect.
Difficult economic times don’t last, but the memory of how you treat your people during them will.
⇨ Further Reading: Get actionable insights on how to provide support in challenging economic times on our blog.
Part Seven: Employee Relations Will Empower Managers, Reducing Risk
It’s time to put managers in the driver’s seat.
Employee relations no longer needs to own every PIP, coaching conversation or minor employee issue. Instead, employee relations defines the processes, sets the standards and hands execution over to managers, which relieves administrative burden. Yes, we know that can feel daunting — especially when only 2% of employee relations professionals are very confident in their managers’ ability to handle people issues. And that’s a problem because 61% of employees still report issues directly to their manager.
When managers have a clear plan to follow, ambiguity disappears.
You can rest assured your people leaders are handling issues in a way that improves the employee experience, not tarnishes it. This shift elevates the entire employee relations ecosystem.
Issues surface sooner, teams follow the same playbook and employees experience a fairer, more transparent process. And with managers equipped to handle more on their own, employee relations can redirect its energy toward the strategic challenges that actually move the business forward. It’s not about handing off work. Think of it as raising the bar for everyone involved.
Psst: The simplest way to make this real? Give managers a people leader tool that offers smart triage, quick access to the right documentation and a clear path for looping in employee relations when it matters. A centralized system does more than streamline tasks; it builds confidence, creates autonomy and eliminates the guesswork that so often leads to inconsistent handling. Employee relations sets the guardrails, managers operate within them and the entire organization benefits from decisions that are steady, predictable and aligned. Take the next step: Explore HR Acuity’s managER and ensure your people leaders are equipped to manage employee issues consistently, confidently and compliantly — every time.
⇨ Further Reading: See how you can help your people leaders reduce risk and increase standardization by reading our blog.
Part Eight: Teams Will Lean into Data More to Ensure Evidence-Driven Decisions
In employee relations, guessing or relying on recollection can lead to inconsistent decisions, overlooked patterns and legal exposure. Without accurate, centralized documentation and standardized processes, important details can slip through the cracks.
That means behavioral trends may go unnoticed and organizations risk making decisions that are difficult to defend or repeat consistently.
As Deb says:
We need to leave a reactive mindset behind. In 2026, employee relations teams should focus on measurement and building trust, using data as a predictive tool to anticipate issues and stay ahead of what’s happening.
Every interaction, decision and outcome is being captured in centralized systems, creating a single source of truth. Consistently tracked data allows teams to surface themes, identify risk patterns and measure the impact of interventions — not just anecdotally, but with metrics that matter.
Data-driven employee relations goes beyond compliance. It’s the only way to accurately tell the story of trust and risk. Metrics give leadership clear visibility into where issues are surfacing, how they’re being resolved and how interventions are improving the employee experience.
The takeaway: In 2026, if it isn’t tracked, it doesn’t exist. Organizations that harness data can act faster, standardize responses, reduce risk and demonstrate the tangible value of employee relations across the business.
⇨ Further Reading: Turn reactive responses into proactive strategies with data. Read our blog to learn how.
Turning Turbulence into Opportunity for Employee Relations
The year ahead will reward teams that get intentional: Embed responsible AI as quiet infrastructure, build muscle for continuous regulatory change, protect employee relations practitioners from burnout and meet rising mental health complexity with coordinated, data-driven care.
The role of employee relations is widening, and teams are now expected to connect signals across performance, sentiment, accommodations and manager escalations to guide fair, defensible decisions. Uncertainty isn’t going away, but your playbook can be steady.
Jill Stover, HR Acuity’s Vice President of Customer Success & Account Management, shares:
At the end of the day, it’s all about mitigating risk while building a culture employees can thrive in.
Prioritize consistency, prevention and evidence, and use that as your toolkit to create stability when it matters most.
Ready to learn more? Download the eBook & check out our companion blogs:
- 2026 Employee Relations Trends: AI Becomes Invisible Infrastructure
- 2026 Employee Relations Trends: Regulatory Changes Become the New Normal
- 2026 Employee Relations Trends: Teams Begin to Address Employee Relations Burnout
- 2026 Employee Relations Trends: Mental Health Will Continue to Drive Case Complexity and Volume
- 2026 Employee Relations Trends: Employee Relations Gains Recognition as Leadership’s Strategic Partner
- 2026 Employee Relations Trends: Employee Relations Provides Support Amidst Economic Pressures
- 2026 Employee Relations Trends: Employee Relations Empowers People Leaders
- 2026 Employee Relations Trends: Teams Will Lean into Data to Ensure Evidence-Driven Decisions
