The Employment Rights Act 2025 is here

The Employment Rights Bill received Royal Assent on 18 December 2025, marking the most significant overhaul of employment law in decades.

The new Act strengthens existing worker protections, tightens compliance requirements for employers and creates a new regulator with far-reaching investigation and enforcement powers.

It introduces major reforms across a wide range of areas, including:

• Increased unfair dismissal protections – reducing the qualifying period from two years to six months’ service, regardless of any probationary period
• Expanded trade union rights and access to workplaces (including non-unionised businesses) and a relaxation of some existing balloting and notice rules
• Making ‘fire and rehire’ practices unlawful for certain contract variations where staff refuse to agree to proposed changes
• Increasing family-friendly and flexible working entitlements, making some existing provisions day-one rights
• Extending anti-harassment protections – reintroducing protection against third-party harassment and requiring employers to take “all reasonable steps” to prevent sexual harassment at work
• An overhaul of zero-hours arrangements and the gig economy – employers must offer guaranteed hours where workers’ actual hours exceed their contracted minimum over a defined reference period.

While some provisions have already come into effect, most of the changes will be phased in from early 2026, through 2027 and beyond.

Changes taking effect from 18 December include the repeal of provisions introduced by the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act 2023. This won’t have a practical impact on most organisations immediately, but further repeals will follow in two months.

How we can help

To help businesses prepare for these developments, we’ve launched our Employment Rights Act Hub.

This key resource includes further detail on the changes, roadmaps for implementation and practical steps businesses need to take now and in the future. The Hub provides updates on the latest changes and developments.

We’re also ready to support organisations in getting to grips with these changes through bespoke training and surgery sessions.

2026 is set to be a busy year of change, so make sure your business is ready.