Everything You Need to Know About the New Employment Rights Bill – July 2025 

On 10th October 2024, the government revealed the Employment Rights Bill. This marked one of the most comprehensive overhauls of UK workplace law. The Bill has recently been amended, with the most recent changes made on 7th July 2025. Employers are now faced with growing pressure to adjust their policies to remain compliant. 

What you may be wondering is, ‘when does the new employment rights bill start?’. Some policies will begin in April 2026, while others are likely to come into force in 2027. Read this article for the latest updates. 

What is the new employment rights bill? 

When is the new employment rights bill coming in? Here are some of the key changes and when they’re going to come into force in the next 12 months and beyond: 

From April 2026:  

Changes to statutory sick pay 

From April next year, all employees will get SSP (statutory sick pay) from their first day off sick. The current 3-day waiting period and minimum earnings rule will be scrapped. This change is specifically targeted at benefiting lower-paid and part-time staff. 

Introduction of the Fair Work Agency 

A new watchdog, the Fair Work Agency, will be created to make sure employers are meeting their legal duties around key employee rights (like sick pay and holiday pay). The agency will have the authority to investigate and act where rules aren’t being followed by those in authority.  

Compulsory parental leave  

Starting from their very first day of employment, employees will be able to take paternity leave and unpaid parental leave, without having to meet a minimum length of service. This change will benefit over a million workers who didn’t previously qualify.  

From October 2026: 

Sexual harassment duties 

Employers will now be facing the responsibility of taking all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace, including incidents involving third parties such as clients or customers. This builds on the current guidelines, where ‘reasonable steps’ should be taken. Failure of the company to act proactively could lead to tribunal claims and reputational damage.  

Longer timeframe to make tribunal claims 

Employees will have up to six months (currently 3 months) to file claims with an employment tribunal. However, employers need to be prepared for a longer period of potential legal risk.  

A ban on the hiring and re-hiring of employees 

Under new legislation, employers will no longer be allowed to dismiss employees and then rehire them on less favourable terms. This is often called ‘fire and re-hire’, remember P&O?Terminating staff for refusing these changes will be deemed automatically unfair, unless the employer is in serious financial trouble. 

The ban will also cover: 

• Attempts to impose new flexibility clauses affecting protected terms
• Dismissal of employees, who are later replaced by contractors

Trade union access 

Right now, trade unions don’t have a general right to enter workplaces to speak to or recruit members. They can only enter if the employer agrees or if they’re given permission by the Central Arbitration Committee (CAC) during a formal recognition process. 

From October 2026, trade union officials will have stronger rights to access workplaces for recruitment, organising (but not to plan strikes), and collective bargaining. This will include both in-person and virtual access (like video meetings or emails). 

Unions will be able to formally request access, and employers will either: 

• Negotiate an “access agreement” with the union
• Or, if no agreement is reached, the union can ask the CAC to step in and allow access

The CAC will usually approve access as long as it doesn’t seriously disrupt the business. However, any part of a workplace that is someone’s home will be exempt. If employers don’t cooperate, the CAC can order them to allow access and even issue financial penalties. 

From 2027: 

Clamp down on unfair dismissal 

Currently, employees need two years’ service before they can claim unfair dismissal. That’s set to change in 2027 – although most people expected this to come in sooner. 

From day 1, unfair dismissal will no longer be permitted. To give employers some flexibility, a lighter process will apply during an initial 9-month period. During this time, dismissals will still be allowed for reasons like conduct or performance, as long as a basic procedure is followed. However, this approach won’t apply to redundancy cases. 

Guaranteed hours for zero-hour workers 

Employees on zero-hour contracts will have greater job security. Should they be working more hours each week than their current contract outlines, they have the right to request a new contract that reflects this.  There is a lack of clarity over the period in which this will apply, for example, the previous 12 weeks or 52 weeks? 

Pregnancy loss leave 

Starting in 2027, women who have a miscarriage (losing a pregnancy before 24 weeks) will get 1 week of unpaid leave for bereavement. 

Closing the gender pay gap  

Currently, employers with over 250 employees are required to publish annual reports regarding their gender pay gap. New regulations will require all employers to publish formal equality action plans. Financial penalties will come into force for non-compliance. The rollout will begin in April 2026 voluntarily. But, legal enforcement of this policy is expected in 2027. 

Worried about keeping up with the new employment laws? 

With the Employment Rights Bill 2025 coming into force as early as next April, it’s advised to seek HR advice to ensure your business prepared for these changes. Partnering with Trusted HR can give you peace of mind that your contracts and policies are fully up to date and legally sound. 

Over the coming months, we will be staying on top of developments in the Employment Rights Bill 2025. So, please do get in touch if you have any questions, or would like to find out more.