Employment Rights Act 2025: Changes You Need to Act on Now & How to Get Ready!

Employment Rights Act 2025: Changes You Need to Act on Now & How to Get Ready

The Employment Rights Act 2025 became law on 18 December 2025, introducing some significant changes to UK employment law. These reforms will be implemented gradually throughout 2026 and 2027 and will fundamentally change how employers manage employee rights, industrial action, family leave, parental leave and more.

Although many of the changes are not yet in force, employers should start preparing now to ensure compliance and avoid costly errors. Especially in relation to ensuring that relevant HR policies including, paternity, parental leave, anti-harassment (sexual harassment), whistleblowing and statutory sick pay are up to date in your employment contract or employee handbook / HR policies.

This blog sets out the key changes employers need to be aware of now and what is still to come.

Changes Starting from 6 April 2026

Paternity Leave and Unpaid Parental Leave

• Paternity leave will become a ‘day one right’, allowing someone to give notice of leave from the first day of employment (currently, someone must have worked for their employer for 26 weeks).

• Ordinary parental leave will also become a day one right (currently, someone must have worked for their employer for one year to be eligible).

• The restriction on taking paternity leave after shared parental leave will be removed.

Statutory Sick Pay (SSP)

• Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) will be payable from day one of illness instead of day four.

• The lower earnings limit will also be removed. Currently, workers must earn a minimum amount to be eligible for statutory sick pay.

• As a result, more employees will qualify for SSP, and payments will begin from the first day of sickness.

Whistleblowing Protections – Sexual Harassment

• Sexual harassment will become a protected disclosure under whistleblowing legislation, providing protection from detriment and unfair dismissal for whistle-blowers making a sexual harassment disclosure, allowing employees to raise concerns without fear of retaliation.

• If an employee raises a complaint of sexual harassment, employers will need to manage the matter carefully, recognising that it now falls under whistleblowing protections.

Increased Protective Awards for Collective Redundancy Failures to Consult

• The maximum protective award for failing to properly consult on collective redundancies will double from 90 to 180 days’ pay, significantly increasing the financial risk for non-compliant employers.

Further Trade Union Reforms, Including:

• Easier workplace recognition for trade unions.

• The introduction of electronic voting for ballots.

• The expected removal of the 50% turnout requirement for ballots shortly after April 2026.

Changes Already in Place Effective from 29 December 2025

Bereaved Partner’s Paternity Leave

• Legislation allowing a new right to Bereaved Partner’s Paternity Leave. This provides up to 52 weeks’ leave for fathers or partners where the child’s mother or primary parent dies before the child’s first birthday.

Removal of Minimum Service Level Rules for Strikes

• The new legislation also included the removal of minimum service level rules for strikes.

  Previously, employers could require a minimum number of workers to remain on duty during industrial action to maintain essential services. Under the new rules:

  • Employers can no longer impose minimum staffing levels during strikes

  • Industrial action may have a greater operational impact

  • Employers must plan for disruption without relying on minimum service requirements.

Looking Ahead

Gender Pay Gap and Menopause Action Plans

• From April 2026, employers will be encouraged to introduce gender pay gap and menopause action plans on a voluntary basis. These plans are intended to promote workplace equality and better support employees experiencing menopause-related symptoms.

  
  

• By 2027, these measures are expected to become mandatory, requiring companies to:

  • Analyse and report on gender pay gaps.

  • Develop strategies to address pay disparities.

  • Implement policies and reasonable adjustments to support menopausal employee.

  • Employers should begin planning how to gather relevant data and develop appropriate policies so they are ready for future obligations.

    
    

• Protection from Unfair Dismissal

  • Protection from unfair dismissal will become a right after 6 months of being in a job. Currently, someone must have worked for their employer for 2 years before claiming unfair dismissal.

  • This will happen in January 2027.

    
    

Practical Steps Employers Should Take Now

To prepare for these reforms, employers should consider taking the following steps:

• Review and update HR policies, particularly those relating to parental leave, sick pay and anti-harassment whistleblowing in the staff handbook or if relevant your template employment contract.

• Train managers and HR teams on the changes

• Begin collecting data on gender pay and menopause-related issues.

• If relevant engage proactively with trade unions to understand how new recognition and ballot rules may affect workplace relations.

• Monitor guidance from the Fair Work Agency once it becomes operational to understand enforcement priorities.

• Keep up to date with other proposed changes in employment law (In most cases, how these changes will be implemented subject to government consultations) that will be coming into effect later on in 2026 and 2027.

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If you need HR support on this or other topic, please reach out to Progressive HR Solutions via email at info@progressivehrs.co.uk

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