Preparing for change: Employment Rights Bill timeline

The Employment Rights Bill (the Bill) currently consists of 318 pages and nearly 200 explanatory notes and it has been subject to over 150 agreed amendments to date. It represents the fulfilment of one of Labour’s key manifesto commitments and was described in their ‘Plan to Make Work Pay’ as the “biggest upgrade to workers’ rights in a generation”. Such radical reforms are likely to have a significant impact on the economy, with the Government’s own impact assessment reporting that it could cost UK businesses up to £5 billion a year to adapt to the new laws introduced by the Bill.

The Government has now published a roadmap for both consulting on and implementing the Bill over the 2025 to 2027 period. This is as follows:

Consultation Dates:

Summer/Autumn 2025

• Day 1 right for protection from unfair dismissal;
• A package of trade union measures including electronic balloting and workplace balloting; simplifying trade union recognition processes; a duty to inform workers of their right to join a trade union; and, right of access;
• Fire and rehire;
• Bereavement leave;
• Greater rights for pregnant workers; and
• Ending the exploitative use of Zero Hours Contracts.

Winter 2025/Early 2026

• A package of trade union measures including protection against detriments for taking industrial action and, blacklisting;
• Tightening tipping law;
• Collective redundancy; and
• Flexible working.

Implementation Dates:

Autumn 2025

• Repeal of the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act 2023;
• Repeal of the great majority of the Trade Union Act 2016;
• Simplifying industrial action notices and industrial action ballot notices; and
• Protections against dismissal for taking industrial action.

April 2026

• Collective redundancy (doubling the protective award);
• Day 1 paternity leave and unpaid parental leave;
• Whistleblowing protections;
• Fair Work Agency to be established;
• Statutory Sick Pay (removal of the Lower Earnings Limit); and
• Simplifying trade union recognition process and reforms to balloting.

October 2026

• Fire and rehire;
• Tightening tipping law;
• Duty to inform workers of their right to join a trade union;
• Strengthen trade unions’ right of access;
• 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;
• New rights and protections for trade union representatives;
• Extensions to employment tribunal time limits; and
• Extending protections against detriments for taking industrial action.

2027

• Extended rights for pregnant workers;
• Power for regulations to specify the “reasonable” steps to be taken to prevent sexual harassment;
• Blacklisting;
• Industrial relations framework;
• Collective redundancy – collective consultation threshold;
• Flexible working;
• Bereavement leave;
• Ending the exploitative use of Zero Hours Contracts and applying the measures to agency workers; and
• ‘Day 1’ right for protection from unfair dismissal.

Next Steps:

Whilst the Bill is still subject to consultation, debate and amendments, employers are well advised to start preparing of the changes now. Even though the final format of the Bill is likely to change before it becomes law, now is the best time for all employers to consider what proactive steps are needed to ensure they are ready for what will be the most significant change to UK employment law in decades.

If you have any questions about the Bill, please call us on 0113 207 0000.