Key Dates for the Employment Rights Act 2025 and How Employers Can Prepare

The Employment Rights Act 2025, which received royal assent on 18 December 2025, will bring about many employment law reforms and have a significant impact on employees, HR practices, and governance. The act will be delivered in phases across a two-year period.

The government initially reiterated its intention to follow its policy paper, Implementing the Employment Rights Bill: roadmap (published in July last year), but has more recently published a Plan to Make Work Pay and Employment Rights Act: Timeline Update. This sets out when the various changes are expected to take effect.

While some changes won’t be implemented until at least 2027, some may come into effect quite quickly. We’ve summarised what to expect and when.

Consultations already underway

The following consultations have taken place or are in progress:

• Trade union measures, including electronic and workplace balloting (closed 28 January 2026), the duty to inform workers of their right to join a trade union (closed on 18 December 2025), and trade unions’ right of access (closed on 18 December 2025). New rights and protections for trade union representatives will be covered by an Acas Code of Practice consultation.
• Bereavement leave (closed on 15 January 2026).
• Increased rights for pregnant workers (closed on 15 January 2026).
• Fire and Rehire: changes to expenses, benefits, and shift patterns (closes 1 April 2026).
• Recognition code of practice and e-balloting unfair practices (closes 1 April 2026).
• Strengthening the law on tipping (closes 1 April 2026).
• Improving access to flexible working (closes 30 April 2026).
• Modernising the Agency Work Regulatory Framework (closes 1 May 2026).

The following consultations were expected in Autumn 2025 but have been delayed.

• Simplifying trade union recognition processes.
• Dismissal and re-engagement (fire and rehire).
• Ending the exploitative use of zero hours contracts.

We are also expecting consultations on the following:

Early 2026

• Further trade union measures, including protection against detriment for taking industrial action and blacklisting.
• Collective redundancies.

2026 to 2027

• What will amount to reasonable steps to prevent workplace sexual harassment.

Changes that came into force on royal assent

The following measures came into force on Royal Assent, on 18 December 2025:

• Repeal of most of the Trade Union Act 2016.
• Repeal of the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act 2023.

Changes taking effect in February 2026

The following measures are due to come into force:

• Protection against dismissal for taking industrial action.
• Removal of the ten-year ballot requirement for trade union political funds.

Trade Union Reforms Under the Employment Rights Act 2025 

Changes taking effect in April 2026

The following are due to come into force:

• Increase in the maximum period of the collective redundancy protective award.
• Day one rights to paternity leave and unpaid parental leave.
• Whistleblowing protections – reports of sexual harassment will become protected disclosures.
• Establishment of the Fair Work Agency.
• Removal of the lower earnings limit and waiting period for Statutory Sick Pay.
• Simplifying the trade union recognition process.
• Equality action plans, covering the steps employers are taking to address their gender pay gap and support employees going through menopause, are also expected to be introduced on a voluntary basis in April 2026 before becoming mandatory in 2027.

Unfair Changes to Unfair Dismissal Under the Employment Rights Act 2025

Trade Union Reforms Under the Employment Rights Act 2025 

Changes taking effect in August 2026

• Electronic and workplace balloting for statutory trade union ballots.

Trade Union Reforms Under the Employment Rights Act 2025 

Changes taking effect in October 2026

The following provisions are expected to come into force:

• Requirement for employers to take all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment.
• Requirement for employers to prevent third-party harassment of employees.
• Introduction of the power for regulations to be made specifying what steps are to be regarded as reasonable to determine whether an employer has taken all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment.
• New rights and protections for trade union representatives.
• Duty to inform workers of their right to join a trade union.
• Strengthening of trade unions’ rights of access to workplaces.
• Protection against detriment for taking industrial action.
• Tightening of tipping laws.
• Two-tier procurement code for outsourced public sector workers.
• Extension of tribunal time limit from three months to six months.

Trade Union Reforms Under the Employment Rights Act 2025 

Changes taking effect in December 2026

• The Mandatory Seafarers Charter is expected to commence in December 2026.

Changes taking effect in January 2027

• Qualifying period for unfair dismissal claims reduced from two years to six months.
• Restrictions on dismissal and re-engagement (fire and re-hire).

Unfair Changes to Unfair Dismissal Under the Employment Rights Act 2025 

Changes expected during 2027

Measures that are expected to come into force in 2027 include:

• Measures for zero hours and low hours contract workers and agency workers, including the duty to offer guaranteed hours contracts, provide reasonable notice of shifts and pay compensation for cancelled, moved or curtailed shifts.

Zero-hours, low-hours and casual workers: what the Employment Rights Act 2025 changes 

• Requirement for employers to produce equality action plans, covering the steps they are taking to address their gender pay gap and support employees going through menopause.
• Increased rights for pregnant workers.
• Specifying steps that are to be regarded as ‘reasonable’, to determine whether an employer has taken all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment.
• Strengthening protections against blacklisting.
• Electronic and workplace balloting for recognition and derecognition ballots.
• Industrial relations framework.
• Regulation of umbrella companies.
• New collective redundancy consultation threshold.
• Introduction of reasonableness requirement to refuse flexible working requests.
• Day one right to bereavement leave.

What employers should be doing now

While there is still uncertainty around the finer details of some key parts of the act, employers do need to start considering what changes they will make.

Recruitment processes will need revamping and stricter training and risk assessments around the risks of sexual harassment, and third-party harassment will need to be considered very carefully.

For some employers, preparing for the risks of trade union recognition will be required as well as considering how to deal and respond to requests for access agreements.

Employers may wish to review their current policies and seek early advice to ensure compliance by April 2026.

Important information

This article provides general guidance only and should not be treated as legal advice.

Employment Rights Act 2025: What Employers Need to Know