17.12.2025

The Employment Rights Bill has completed its passage through the Parliamentary process, as “ping-pong” between the House of Commons and House of Lords has reached a close. The measures contained in the Employment Rights Act (ERA) are expected to take effect in stages: some on or within two months of Royal Assent; some from April 2026; some from October 2026; and others in 2027.

There are lots of changes employers need to get to grips with, both now and over the coming months. To help you digest the various legal reforms, we have collated a user-friendly Knowledge Base and comprehensive Employment Rights Act Planner which detail the measures we consider to be of most relevance and interest to employers, along with key action points for HR. 

We also set out below a summary of the key changes.

Measures in effect from Royal Assent or that will take effect shortly after

  • The Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act 2023, which allowed employers to set minimum service levels to be maintained during strikes in certain key sectors such as health, transport, fire and rescue, etc., will be repealed from Royal Assent.
     
  • Protection from unfair dismissal for taking part in protected industrial action will be strengthened, as the current 12-week limit on the protected period will be removed. This means that it will be automatically unfair to dismiss an employee for participating in protected industrial action, regardless of the duration of the action.
     
  • Several changes relating to trade union activity and industrial action – specifically to simplify the rules around strike action, notices and ballots – will take effect two months after Royal Assent.

See Trade Unions/Industrial Action: Spotlight Series for further details. 

Measures that are expected to take effect from April 2026 

  • Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) will become available from day one of sickness absence and for low-paid workers. See Statutory Sick Pay: Spotlight Series for further details.
     
  • Statutory paternity leave and unpaid parental leave will become “day one rights” (instead of requiring minimum periods of employment, as they do currently). In addition, the current requirement for paternity leave to be taken before shared parental leave (or lost) will be removed, with the aim of giving employees more flexibility on which type of leave to take. See Family Friendly Reforms: Spotlight Series.
     
  • The maximum amount which can be awarded against an employer for failing to comply with statutory consultation obligations on collective redundancies (known as the “protective award”) will be doubled, from 90 to 180 days’ pay per affected employee. See Collective Redundancy: Spotlight Series.
     
  • The Fair Work Agency (FWA) will be launched, taking over state enforcement in areas such as minimum wage and sick pay, and with a new remit in respect of paid holiday. Note that whilst the FWA should be established by April 2026, it is unclear when it and its enforcement powers will become fully operational. See Fair Work Agency: Spotlight Series.
     
  • Disclosures relating to sexual harassment will explicitly count as a “qualifying disclosure” for whistleblowing purposes, strengthening protections for those who report this type of misconduct. See Harassment: Spotlight Series.
     
  • The statutory recognition process will be simplified, with a view to making it easier for trade unions to gain recognition for collective bargaining purposes. There are also plans to introduce electronic and workplace balloting for statutory union ballots. See Trade Unions/Industrial Action: Spotlight Series. 

Measures that are expected to take effect from October 2026

  • Significant restrictions will be placed on an employer’s ability to use fire and rehire/fire and replace to change an employee’s terms. See ⁣Fire and Rehire: Spotlight Series.
     
  • Employers will have a new duty to inform workers of their right to join a union, trade unions will benefit from increased access rights, and trade union representatives will gain new rights and protections. Protections against detriments for taking industrial action will also be extended. See ⁣Trade Unions/Industrial Action: Spotlight Series.
     
  • Tribunal claim time limits will be extended. See Employment Tribunal Time Limits: Spotlight Series.
     
  • Protections from harassment will be increased. Employers will be required to take “all” reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment, not just reasonable steps. Employers will also become liable for harassment (not just sexual harassment) by third parties. See Harassment: Spotlight Series.

Measures that are expected to take effect during 2027

  • The qualifying period for claiming ordinary unfair dismissal will reduce from two years to six months. There will also be a removal of the cap on unfair dismissal compensation. See ⁣Unfair Dismissal: Spotlight Series.  
     
  • Various changes will be made to how zero hours and minimum hours contracts operate. For example, it is expected that employers will have a duty to offer zero hours and qualifying minimum hours workers a guaranteed hours contract that reflects the hours they usually work in a reference period and includes information about when the hours are to be worked. Employers will also have to give reasonable notice of shifts and shift changes to workers on zero or minimum hours contracts, workers with no set working pattern and workers who are offered shifts outside their set working pattern. See ⁣Zero Hour Contracts: Spotlight Series.
     
  • Employers with 250 or more employees will be required to publish equality action plans showing what steps they are taking in relation to certain prescribed gender equality matters (for example, in respect of its gender pay gap and how it is supporting workers during the menopause). These measures are expected to be introduced on a voluntary basis in April 2026, before coming into force in 2027. See Action on ⁣Equality: Spotlight Series.
     
  • New dismissal protections will be introduced in relation to pregnant workers and those returning from maternity leave (and potentially other family leave). A new statutory right to bereavement leave will also be introduced. See ⁣Family Friendly Reforms: Spotlight Series.
     
  • Flexible working rights will be strengthened, with a view to encouraging employers to accept flexible working requests. See Flexible Working: Spotlight Series.
     
  • Changes will be made to expand the current threshold (20+ employees at one establishment within a 90 day period) at which collective redundancy consultation is triggered. See Collective Redundancy: Spotlight Series.
     
  • Regulations are expected to set out what an employer must do to qualify as having complied with their anticipatory duty to take ‘all reasonable steps’ to prevent sexual harassment. See Harassment: Spotlight Series.

Measures where timing is currently unknown 

The Government has also indicated that the following reforms will take effect over the coming years, but the likely timing of implementation is currently unknown: a prohibition on non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) concerning discrimination and harassment (see Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDAs): Spotlight Series); holiday record-keeping requirement, which will be enforced by the FWA (see Fair Work Agency: Spotlight Series); a new requirement to name providers of outsourced workers in gender pay gap reports (see ⁣Action on Equality: Spotlight Series); and a new statutory right to bereavement leave for pregnancy loss before 24 weeks (see Family Friendly Reforms: Spotlight Series). In addition, the Government has indicated that it will consult on whether to double the minimum consultation period from 45 to 90 days when an employer is proposing to dismiss 100 or more employees.

Government consultations 

Over recent weeks the Government has launched various consultations (see here), to which Make UK will submit responses. We are also expecting many more consultations over the coming months. 

We are keen to hear your views on the proposals in these consultations, including your insights on how specific measures might affect your business and workers in practice. If you would like to contribute, please email our Policy Team.

How Make UK can help

Whether you are already getting support from Make UK or you are just starting to explore your options, we are here to help you plan for all the proposed changes under the ERA and to protect your business. We can support you in the following ways:

  • If you sign up to receive our updates, we will notify you as the legal changes come in, so you can stay compliant and up to date.
     
  • We have detailed HR and employment law guidance, template policies and letters on our website in the HR & Legal Resources section, which will be maintained as the changes come into force.
     
  • Our team of employment lawyers is happy to help if you’ve got questions or need advice. And if you need hands-on support with any projects as you prepare for the changes, our HR and legal consultants can work with you to get the right steps in place and stay compliant.
     
  • Use our ERA enquiry line ([email protected]) for real-time access to legal specialists when you need quick answers about the Employment Rights Act.
     
  • Ask about our Audit and Impact Assessment: A bespoke audit which identifies the level of potential risk in relation to each legal change and provides recommended actions with a timeline to keep you compliant.
     
  • You can also shape future policy. We speak regularly with Government and feed into consultations, using input from businesses like yours.