Employment Rights Bill: where are we now and what is to come?

In this briefing, associate Sam Lawn takes stock of the current landscape and signposts what's ahead. 

A “roadmap for delivering change,” (Implementing the Employment Rights Bill - Our roadmap for delivering change) has been published, which sets out some of the key milestones for employment law reform over the next few years.

The overhaul will be spread over four distinct phases, beginning at Royal Assent, in April 2026, in October 2026 and some of the most complex or contentious changes not taking full effect until 2027. The government has promised to provide detailed guidance to support employers in adapting to the reforms, which are intended to ease the transition.

Employers should be aware of the key dates and should be thinking ahead to make sure they are prepared for the following proposed changes.

Measures taking effect in April 2026

Doubling the maximum period of the protective award for collective redundancies;

• Doubling the maximum period of the protective award for collective redundancies;
• Introducing Day 1 entitlements to paternity leave and unpaid parental leave;
• Introducing enhanced whistleblowing protections;
• Reforming Statutory Sick Pay, including the removal of the lower earnings limit and waiting period; and
• Establishing the Fair Work Agency, which will be a body responsible for enforcing the new requirements.

Measures taking effect in October 2026 

• Banning fire and rehire practices;
• Strengthening trade unions' rights;
• Strengthening the employer’s duty to prevent sexual harassment;
• Introducing liability for third party harassment; and
• Extending the time limit for bringing claims in the employment tribunal from three to six months.

Measures taking effect in 2027 

• Implementing action plans for the gender pay gap and the menopause;
• Improving protections for pregnant workers;
• Improving access to flexible working;
• Ending “exploitative” zero hours contracts; and
• Introducing Day 1 unfair dismissal rights.

For a fuller summary of the proposed changes, take a look at our previous update here.

While some of the big changes may sound as though they’re still a long way off, the impact could be significant and opportunities could be missed if employers don’t stay ahead of the proposals. We recommend: 

1. Audits of affected areas of law. This is a good opportunity to carry out an audit of your workplace and consider the effects that the changes will have. For example, is your organisation particularly reliant upon zero-hours workers? Are your employees at particular risk of third party harassment because of the nature of the work they do? How would reforms to statutory sick pay impact your organisation? Being aware of the particular areas of vulnerability and taking steps to mitigate these risks prior to the implementation of the new legislation will be crucial.
2. Reviewing policies and procedures. Ensure that current employment policies are up-to-date and flexible enough to allow for amendments to be made when this becomes law and the government’s guidance is provided next year.
3. Learning and development. Ensure your organisation’s learning and development and onboarding systems are up-to-date. The new changes place additional responsibilities on employers, for example, to ensure that appropriate training and steps are taken to prevent harassment in the workplace and a successful defence in the employment tribunal may be reliant upon showing that your organisation takes these responsibilities seriously.

Sam Lawn is an associate in the charity law and not-for-profit team. He has experience advising on a wide variety of employment law issues, including redundancies, discrimination, whistleblowing disputes and the operation of TUPE. He also has litigation experience within the Employment Tribunal.