Written by Ann Barker, Head of Growth and Engagement, WorkInConfidence
The Employment Rights Act 2025: What’s Law, What’s Coming — and Why Employers Should Pay Attention Now
As 2025 drew to a close, on 18th December, the Employment Rights Bill completed its final stages in Parliament and received Royal Assent — becoming the Employment Rights Act 2025.
For many employers, the immediate reaction has been uncertainty. Is it the law already? Do changes apply now? And what, realistically, needs attention in January?
The short answer is reassuring: while the Act is now law, most of its provisions will be introduced gradually across 2026 and 2027. There is no overnight overhaul. But that doesn’t mean organisations can afford to ignore it.
Because beyond the headlines, the Act signals a clear shift in expectations around fairness, consistency and accountability — and that shift starts long before new rules formally take effect.
The Headline Changes Employers Should be Aware Of
Unfair dismissal
Qualifying period reduced (from 2 years to 6 months) – planned from January 2027
Stronger expectation of fair process from the outset
Day-one family-friendly rights – expected from April 2026
Parental-related rights becoming available much earlier
Onboarding and line-manager awareness will matter more than ever
Statutory Sick Pay reform
Moves toward broader eligibility and earlier access
Payroll and absence processes will need review
Zero-hours & insecure work
Greater focus on predictability, notice, and fairness
Employers expected to justify flexibility — not rely on it by default
Bereavement leave & other rights
- New statutory bereavement leave rights, stronger pregnancy protections, and flexible working as the default are all included
The Direction of Travel: What the Act is Telling Employers
While details will roll out over time, the intent of the Act is already clear. It:
Lowers thresholds for legal challenge (for example, shorter qualifying periods for unfair dismissal)
Expands day-one rights, particularly around family-friendly entitlements
Raises expectations of fair process, consistency and justification in employment decisions
Taken together, this changes the risk landscape for employers.
What This Means In Practice
As rights expand and protections apply earlier:
More decisions are open to scrutiny
More people are protected sooner
More disputes hinge on what happened before a situation escalated
In other words, outcomes increasingly depend not just on what decision was made, but how it was reached, how concerns were handled along the way, and whether people felt processes were fair.
This is where many organisations are exposed — not through deliberate wrongdoing, but through blind spots, missed signals, or informal practices that don’t hold up under pressure.
Where Employee Voice Fits
The Employment Rights Act 2025 does not require employers to introduce speak-up systems or formal voice mechanisms.
But it does increase the risk of not knowing what’s going wrong early.
When disputes arise, the questions employers increasingly face are:
Were concerns raised?
Were they taken seriously?
Was there an opportunity to address issues before formal action became necessary?
In this context, employee voice matters not as a legal checkbox, but as evidence of good process — showing that organisations took reasonable steps to listen, respond and act fairly.
What Good Employers Should Be Doing Now
January is the Right Time to Focus on Fundamentals:
Audit Policies
- Start reviewing contracts -dismissal, probation periods, parental leave policies, and performance management processes.
- Ensure policies reflect how things actually work in practice.
- Identify where issues tend to surface late, rather than early.
Engage HR & Payroll Teams
- SSP and parental leave changes will affect payroll systems and HR processes — factor in lead-time.
Plan Training
- Line managers will need to know about and be trained on new dismissal thresholds, flexible working rules, and guaranteed hours obligations.
- Support managers to handle concerns consistently, confidently, and fairly.
Communicate Early
Proactive communication to teams about upcoming rights reduces confusion. It’s not about anticipating every legal change, but rather about reducing risk by building and strengthening trust and increasing visibility.
A Final Thought
Employment law rarely causes problems on its own. Most disputes escalate because concerns weren’t surfaced, weren’t heard, or weren’t addressed early enough.
As the Employment Rights Act 2025 raises expectations around fairness and accountability, organisations that invest in clear processes and early insight will be far better placed to navigate the changes ahead — calmly, credibly and with confidence.
How WorkInConfidence Helps
WorkInConfidence supports organisations in creating environments where employees feel safe and confident to call things out. We offer:
- Secure, anonymous two way speak-up channels.
- Case management that ensures issues are tracked and resolved, as well as learnings made and shared.
- Engagement and survey tools to measure confidence and culture.
Email: help@workinconfidence.com I Tel: 0114 3049648
Additional Resources....
There is a range of Employer Guides on our website which you may find useful and interesting. Here’s a link:
https://www.workinconfidence.com/employee-engagement-resources-and-tools/
A safe and secure two-way anonymous channel for your people to raise concerns via phone, tablet, or PC, ensuring you are aware of any workplace issues, and can respond quickly and accordingly
Easily set up, run and interpret surveys on engagement, respect, wellness or other topics to ensure you always understand your people, their needs and motivations.
A confidential external phone line with a dedicated Speak Up Guardian for your people to raise concerns with. We also provide training in Freedom to Speak Up, Speaking up and safeguarding processes.