The Employment Rights Act 2025 is officially here, and it’s set to be one of the biggest shake‑ups to UK employment law in decades.

The legislation received Royal Assent in December 2025 and will be rolled out in phases over the next two years. The aim is to support fairer pay, more secure work, stronger protections, and introduce a modern approach to workers’ rights that actually reflects today’s workplaces.

In this blog, we’ll break down what’s changing, when it’s happening, and how iHasco’s online training courses can help you stay compliant and confident.

What is the Employment Rights Act 2025?

The Employment Rights Act 2025 forms part of the government’s Plan to Make Work Pay. It updates existing employment law and introduces new rights around:

• Job security and fair pay

• Family‑friendly working

• Protection from harassment and discrimination

• Trade union rights

• Stronger enforcement of employment law

Crucially, these changes won’t land all at once. Most measures will come into force on common commencement dates (6 April and 1 October) over the next two years.

Key changes employers need to know about

The Employment Rights Act 2025 introduces reforms that will affect how organisations recruit, manage, and support their workforce. While not every provision will apply to every employer, many of the changes strengthen existing obligations and increase expectations around fairness, transparency, and consistency.

Below, we explore the most significant changes in more detail and what they mean in practice for employers.

1. Zero‑hours contracts and job security

The Act tackles one‑sided flexibility by introducing:

• Rights to guaranteed hours

• Reasonable notice of shifts

• Compensation for short‑notice shift cancellations

This applies to agency workers too, meaning employers will need to review how flexible work is managed across their organisation.

Expected commencement: 2027

2. ‘Fire and rehire’ restrictions

Under the Act, dismissing employees for refusing changes to key contractual terms will usually be considered automatically unfair dismissal.

The only exception is where businesses are facing severe financial difficulty and genuinely have no alternative. This is a major shift and one that employers will need to approach carefully.

Expected commencement: October 2026

3. Unfair dismissal rights

The qualifying period to bring an unfair dismissal claim will reduce from two years to six months. On top of that, the current cap on compensation will be removed.

This makes having clear, lawful procedures, as well as a strong management team more important than ever.

Expected commencement: 2027

4. Day‑one family‑friendly rights

From April 2026, several family‑friendly rights will become available from day one of employment, including:

• Paternity leave

• Unpaid parental leave

Parents will also be able to take paternity leave after shared parental leave, which is a change designed to offer more flexibility for modern families.

Expected commencement: April 2026

5. Stronger sick pay protections

Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) is set to undergo one of its most significant reforms in recent decades, reflecting a wider policy shift towards improving financial security for workers during periods of ill health.

Two major changes will come into force:

• The Lower Earnings Limit will be removed

• SSP will be payable from day one, instead of day four

Taken together, these changes are designed to make sure that workers are not forced to choose between their health and their income, particularly those in lower‑paid or insecure roles. The government has positioned this reform as a key measure to reduce presenteeism, improve wellbeing, and support long‑term workforce participation.

Expected commencement: April 2026

6. Harassment, whistleblowing and NDAs

The Act strengthens protections around workplace harassment by:

• Requiring employers to take all reasonable steps (not just reasonable steps) to prevent sexual harassment

• Introducing liability for third‑party harassment (e.g. customers, members of the public, and contractors)

• Making sexual harassment a qualifying disclosure under whistleblowing law

• Voiding NDA clauses that prevent workers speaking out about harassment or discrimination

Expected commencement of whistleblowing law update: April 2026
Expected commencement of all reasonable steps against sexual harassment, and third-party harassment: October 2026

7. Gender pay gap and menopause action plans

From April 2026, large employers will be encouraged to produce formal action plans setting out how they are addressing their gender pay gap and how they support employees experiencing menopause. While these plans will initially be voluntary, the government has made clear that they are expected to become mandatory from 2027, subject to further consultation and secondary legislation.

Although detailed requirements are still being finalised, the intention is that action plans will go beyond publishing pay gap figures alone. Employers are expected to analyse underlying causes, set clear objectives for improvement, and outline practical steps they are taking across areas such as recruitment, progression, retention, and workplace support. In relation to menopause, this may include adjustments, policy development, raising awareness, and improved manager capability.

Expected commencement: April 2026

8. New enforcement powers

The Act establishes the new Fair Work Agency as a single, unified enforcement body responsible for overseeing compliance across a wide range of employment rights. This includes enforcement of:

• National Minimum Wage

• Holiday pay

• Employment agency standards

• Serious labour exploitation

By bringing these functions together, the aim is to create a more consistent and effective enforcement regime, reducing fragmentation and closing gaps that previously allowed non‑compliance to go unchecked.

The Fair Work Agency will also have enhanced powers, including the ability to:

• Issue and enforce civil penalties

• Share information across enforcement bodies more effectively

• Bring Employment Tribunal claims on behalf of workers in certain circumstances

Extended time limits for tribunal claims

In addition to the creation of the Fair Work Agency, the Act extends the time limit for bringing most Employment Tribunal claims from three months to six months.

This change gives workers more time to seek advice and pursue claims, but it also increases the period of potential legal exposure for employers.

What does this mean for training?

With so many changes coming into effect, keeping training content accurate and up to date is essential.

That’s why we’ve already completed a full review of the iHasco course library against the final wording of the Employment Rights Act 2025.

How iHasco is staying ahead

• We’ve added advance‑notice content to relevant courses, so learners are aware of upcoming legal changes

• Courses will receive full updates in line with key implementation dates in April 2026 and October 2026

• Further updates are planned as additional provisions are confirmed for 2027

Our courses are designed to keep pace with the law as it changes, meaning our clients receive the most accurate and up-to-date information.

Courses affected by the Employment Rights Act

Training areas impacted by the Act include:

• HR Compliance & Wellbeing

• Sexual Harassment (and Sexual Harassment for Managers)

• Bullying & Harassment

• Whistleblowing

• Equality, Diversity & Inclusion (EDI)

• Menopause Awareness

• Disciplinary & Grievance

• Stress Awareness

• New & Expectant Mothers at Work

• Business Compliance Essentials

• Front of House Training

Each affected course includes clear signposting where the law is changing, with deeper updates rolled out as new provisions take effect.

Final thoughts

The Employment Rights Act 2025 is a big step towards fairer, safer, and more secure workplaces, but it also raises the bar for employers.

With the right training in place, staying compliant doesn’t have to be complicated.

At iHasco, we’re committed to keeping our courses legally accurate, practical, and up to date, so you can focus on running your business with confidence.

That’s why we’ve developed our Employment Rights Act Training Bundle. This training is designed to educate employees and managers on the key areas of employment law that are evolving under the Employment Rights Act 2025.

While this training does not, on its own, make an organisation legally compliant, it plays an important role in building awareness, supporting informed conversations, and preparing staff for new and updated employment rights.

Discover how the Employment Rights Act Training Bundle can support your organisation through upcoming legislative change.

*Information is correct at time of distribution and subject to change.