On 3 February 2025, the government published an updated timetable for the raft of employment law changes set out in the Employment Rights Act 2025. Most of the changes are on schedule as set out by the government in their implementation roadmap in July 2025. However, one very significant change, the new rules on fire and rehire, which we expected to be implemented in October this year, has been delayed until January 2027.
Look out for some very significant changes coming into effect in April 2026, such as the doubling of the protective award for a failure to inform and consult on collective redundancies from 90 to 180 days and removal of the waiting period and lower earnings limit for Statutory Sick Pay.
The current projected dates for implementation of key changes are set out below:
On 18 February 2026
- Industrial relations simplification: Most of the Trade Union Act 2016, will be repealed which will simplify requirements for industrial action, political funds, and ballot and notice procedures. There will be strengthened protections against dismissal for taking industrial action.
- Family friendly rights: Newly eligible employees (see below) will be able to give notice for Day 1 Paternity Leave and Unpaid Parental Leave.
On 6 April 2026
- Protective award: The maximum protective award for a failure to inform and consult on collective redundancies (currently triggered when an employer proposes to dismiss 20 or more employees as redundant at one establishment within a 90-day period) will double from 90 to 180 days.
- Day 1 Paternity and Parental Leave: The right to take parental leave and paternity leave will be available to eligible employees from their first day of employment, and there will no longer be a requirement to take paternity leave before shared parental leave.
- Statutory Sick Pay: The three-day waiting period to receive statutory sick pay (SSP) will be removed in addition to the lower earnings limit for entitlement.
- Sexual harassment protected disclosures: Whistleblowing protections will be amended to specifically cover reporting sexual harassment.
- Bereaved Partners’ Paternity Leave: This new right will be introduced for up to 52 weeks leave if the mother/primary adopter dies in the first year.
- Trade union recognition: The process for union recognition will be simplified, both in the initial application stage and at the ballot stage.
- Action plans on gender equality and menopause support: The duty to produce action plans will be implemented on a voluntary basis.
7 April 2026
- Fair Work Agency: The FWA will be established as a consolidation of other bodies and it will have the power to enforce various rights such as holiday pay, sick pay and the minimum wage. The FWA will also be able to provide legal assistance and bring employment tribunal proceedings on behalf of workers.
August 2026
- Electronic balloting for industrial action will be introduced
October 2026
- Expansion of duty to prevent sexual harassment: the new duty will require employers to take ‘all reasonable steps’ to prevent sexual harassment of their employees.
- Third Party harassment: A new stand-alone protection from third party harassment will be introduced.
- Trade union rights: A significant new right for trade unions to access workplaces physically, and to communicate with workers in person or digitally will be implemented. In addition, a new duty will be imposed on employers to give a written statement to their workers, informing them of their right to join a trade union at the start of their employment and at other times. Finally, the protection against detriments for taking industrial action will be extended.
- Public sector outsourcing: The two-tier Code will be re-instated to seek to prevent a two-tier workforce, where private sector employees working on an outsourced public sector service contract have worse terms and conditions than those employees who were transferred to work on it from the public sector.
- Tipping law: The current law on tips will be strengthened.
- Employment tribunal time limits: There will be an increase in tribunal time limits from three to six months.
January 2027
- Unfair dismissal changes: The qualifying period for “ordinary” unfair dismissal claims will be reduced from two years to six months and the cap on the unfair dismissal award will be removed (it is currently the lower of 52 weeks’ gross actual pay at the time of dismissal or £118,223).
- Fire and Rehire: It will be automatically unfair to dismiss an employee where the employer has sought to make a restricted variation and the employee has refused or where dismissal has occurred to enable the employer to replace the employee with someone else on amended terms. A very narrow exception exists. A consultation on these changes has just been published, although this is limited to changes to employment expenses and benefits in kind, and changes to shift patterns, not to all restricted variations.
Later in 2027
This updated timetable confirms the Government is still working towards the broader roadmap for 2027, with the caveat that timing may be further reviewed.
In 2027 therefore, we expect to see the new rules on zero hours contracts (significant changes here), enhanced dismissal protections for pregnant women and new mothers, a new collective consultation threshold for redundancy, mandatory action plans on gender equality and supporting employees through the menopause, minor amends to the flexible working regime and extension of bereavement leave including pregnancy loss. We also hope to see some assistance for employers in the form of regulations specifying steps that are to be regarded as “reasonable”, to determine whether an employer has taken all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment.
Overwhelmed by this list of changes? You are not alone. Do contact us if we can help you navigate any of the topics above.
