Victoria Eustace and Dayna Rodrigues, in our Employment Law team, discuss the Employment Rights Act 2025 (ERA), the changes coming and the considerations and potential impact for employers.
The Employment Rights Bill received Royal Assent on 18 December 2025, meaning that we now have the Employment Rights Act 2025 (‘ERA’).
Much of the ‘ERA’ is subject to further consultation and/or new regulations so, in terms of practical implementation in the workplace, the devil will be in the detail.
In the meantime, we will be exploring the radical changes that the ERA is bringing about.
The various provisions of the ERA are due to come into force at different times from December 2025 to December 2027 inclusive, primarily in each April and October.
The potential impact of these changes is wide ranging. It is vitally important for employers and HR professionals to be aware of and to understand what these changes could mean for their businesses. Naturally, our specialist Employment Law team is here to help and advise.
What has already come into force?
Some of the less commonly known ERA provisions were implemented on 18 December 2025, including:
- The repeal of the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act 2023, removing minimum service levels during essential services strikes [s78 ERA].
- A review by the Secretary of State of the rules around time off for public duties, due by 18 December 2026 [s19 ERA]; and
- A requirement for the Office for Rail and Road and HSE to publish joint guidance on child employment in heritage railway activities by 18 December 2026 [s37 ERA].
What changes are coming?
Trade Union Changes (February 2026)
Many trade union related provisions are due to come into force towards the end of February 2026. The government’s factsheets (see the gov.uk website) provide commentary on the ERA, including Trade Union related changes.
Major changes (April 2026)
A number of the government’s flagship proposals are due to come into force in April this year, including (but not limited to):
Statutory Sick Pay (SSP)
- SSP rates will increase, the lower earnings limit will be removed and there will be no more ‘waiting’ days.
- For further detail, please see our blog article, 'Employment Law - Changes to Statutory Sick Pay to Take Effect in April 2026', in which our senior associate Victoria Eustace explains more.
Parental and paternity leave
- The introduction of “day one” rights will mean that eligible employees, who give the correct notice to their employers, will be entitled to paternity leave and unpaid parental leave from the first day of employment.
- Point to note – newly eligible employees will be able to give notice of their intention to take leave from 18 February 2026.
- Please see our blog article, ‘Employment Law - Family Leave Changes to Take Effect in April 2026’ for further information.
Collective consultation
- The maximum protective award will double from 90 days’ to 180 days’ gross pay per affected employee, significantly increasing the financial risk for employers facing claims for failure to comply with collective redundancy consultation requirements.
The Fair Work Agency (FWA)
- The FWA will bring together existing state enforcement functions concerning employment rights.
- Employers take note - the FWA will have powers to enter and inspect workplaces and documents, recover enforcement costs and may even bring proceedings on a worker’s behalf in the employment tribunals.
Further changes
We expect to see many more radical changes come into force down the line, including in particular:
Protection from harassment by third parties (October 2026)
- Employers will be responsible for taking all reasonable steps to prevent third party harassment of employees, in the course of their employment.
Time limits to bring a claim in the employment tribunals increasing (no earlier than October 2026)
- The limitation period for most common Employment Tribunal claims will increase from three months to six months.
Radical changes to unfair dismissal rights (January 2027)
- Only six months employment will be needed to qualify to bring a claim for unfair dismissal, rather than the current two years. The new limit will apply to all employees with six months service as at implementation.
- The cap on the compensatory award will be removed.
A new type of automatic unfair dismissal (January 2027)
- Dismissing an employee for not agreeing a change to their terms of employment, including ‘fire and re-hire’, will become automatically unfair (unless exempted).
Watch this space as we keep you updated with more news in relation to the ERA 2025.
Our Employment Law team advises employees and employers on all aspects of Employment Law. Please get in touch if we can help.
For further information or legal advice, please contact law@blandy.co.uk or call 0118 951 6800.
This article is intended for the use of clients and other interested parties. The information contained in it is believed to be correct at the date of publication, but it is necessarily of a brief and general nature and should not be relied upon as a substitute for specific professional advice.
