Employment Rights Bill: The government’s timeline for change
The Employment Rights Bill is likely to become law by the end of 2025, and the government have set out their roadmap for rolling out the changes. The reforms will come in stages – but the headlines? Statutory Sick Pay changes are set for April 2026, while zero-hours contract reforms and six-month unfair dismissal rights will land in 2027.
In April 2026…
- Statutory Sick Pay – removal of waiting days and Lower Earnings Limit
- Establishment of the Fair Work Agency
- Doubling maximum protective award for collective redundancy breaches
- Day-one rights to paternity leave and unpaid parental leave
- Strengthened whistleblowing protections
- Simplified trade union recognition process
- Enable electronic and workplace balloting
In October 2026…
- Employers required to take “all reasonable steps” to prevent sexual harassment
- New obligation to prevent third-party harassment
- Fire and rehire reforms come into force
- Tribunal claim time limits extended to six months
- Regulations for the Fair Pay Agreement Adult Social Care Negotiating Body
- Duty to inform workers about union rights and strengthen union reps’ protections
- Tighter tipping laws
In 2027…
- Six-month unfair dismissal rights
- Zero-hours contract reforms (including agency workers)
- Gender pay gap and menopause action plans made mandatory
- Rights for pregnant workers
- New powers defining “reasonable steps” on harassment
- Updated industrial relations framework
- Regulation of umbrella companies
- Changes to collective redundancy consultation thresholds
- Flexible working reforms
- New bereavement leave rights
We’re here to keep you informed every step of the way, with webinars, more legal updates and guides to come as the Bill becomes finalised and passes into law and the details of the changes become clearer.
