On 1st July 2025, the Government published its road map for the Employment Rights Bill. The Implementation Roadmap for the Employment Rights Bill provides the Government’s timeline for introducing its planned employment law changes. The Government hopes that phasing the changes and providing this timeline will help everyone prepare for the changes.
Most significantly, the timeline delays the biggest employment changes. For example, the implementation for ‘Day 1’ protection from unfair dismissal and banning (regulating) the use of “exploitive” Zero Hours Contracts will now happen in 2027 (one year later).
A summary of the timeline is below.
Measures that will take effect shortly (following Royal Assent):
- Repealing most of the Trade Union Act 2016 and the Strikes (Minimum Services Levels) Act 2023 with an aim to remove restrictions on the right to strike and empower trade unions to better represent and negotiate for their members.
- Creating new protection against dismissal for taking industrial action.
- Simplifying industrial action notices and industrial action ballot notices.
Measures that will take effect in April 2026 include:
- Collective redundancy protective award – doubling the maximum period of the protective award.
- ‘Day 1’ Paternity Leave and Unpaid Parental Leave.
- Enhanced whistleblower protections.
- Fair Work Agency body established.
- Statutory Sick Pay – remove the Lower Earnings Limit and waiting period.
- Simplifying trade union recognition process
- Electronic and workplace balloting.
Measures that will take effect in October 2026 include:
- Ban on fire and rehire.
- Bringing forward regulations to establish the Fair Pay Agreement Adult Social Care Negotiating Body.
- Tightening tipping law.
- Duty to inform workers of their right to join a trade union.
- Strengthen trade unions’ right of access and other rights.
- Requiring employers to take “all reasonable steps” to prevent sexual harassment of their employees.
- Introducing an obligation on employers not to permit the harassment of their employees by third parties.
Measures that will take effect in 2027 include:
- Gender pay gap and menopause action plans.
- Strengthen pregnant workers rights.
- Introducing a power to enable regulations to specify steps that are to be regarded as “reasonable”, to determine whether an employer has taken all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment.
- Regulating the use of “exploitive” Zero Hours Contracts.
- ‘Day 1’ right – protection from unfair dismissal.
Consultations for most of these measures will begin this summer and continue into 2026.
For further information, please contact Kerry Curd in the employment team on 01626 202406 or email KerryCurd@wbw.co.uk.
WBW Solicitors has offices in Axminster, Bovey Tracey, Brixham, Chard, Exeter, Exmouth, Honiton, Launceston, Newton Abbot, Paignton, Seaton, Sidmouth, and Torquay.
This article is for general information only and does not constitute legal or professional advice. Please note that the law may have changed since this article was published.
