In case you missed our December update, we can now confirm that the Employment Rights Act 2025 received Royal Assent on the 18th of December. Whilst the passing of the Act provides more certainty, there are still aspects of the Act that will require further definition through supporting regulations, some following consultations. We’ll keep you up to date as we learn more.
Measures now in place
The Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act 2023 was repealed.
- Employers in essential services (such as health and transport) can no longer issue work notices to restrict strike action and ensure minimum service levels.
Dates for the diary: 18th February 2026
Paternity and Parental Leave
- In anticipation of paternity and parental leave becoming a day one right, those employees who will become eligible for the leave from 6th April 2026 will be able to give notice of their intention to take the leave from this date.
- To allow for the change, employees whose baby is due between 5th April and 25th July 2026 and will have been employed for less than 26 weeks up to any day in the ‘qualifying week’ (15th week before the expected week of childbirth) will not need to give the usual 15 weeks’ notice of their baby’s due date, between 18th February and 25th July 2026. Employees will still need to provide 28 days’ notice of when they want their leave to start and how much leave they want to take.
- The usual notice periods will apply from 26th July 2026.
Industrial Action (Trade Unions)
- Protection against dismissal for taking part in industrial action – removal of the 12-week cap that an employee is protected for, increasing their protection against unfair dismissal.
- Protection against detriment for a worker taking part in industrial action to be introduced.
- Industrial action ballots
- Removal of 40% support threshold requirement.
- Reduction in information required on ballot voting paper.
- Increase in mandate period for industrial action following a successful ballot from 6 to 12 months, after which the industrial action ballot ceases to be effective.
- Reduction in the amount of information required in the notice to employer of industrial action.
6th April 2026
Paternity and Parental Leave
- The service requirement for Paternity and Parental Leave (not pay) will be removed, becoming a day one right. The notice requirements (as mentioned above), however, have not changed and must still be given, unless it is not reasonably practicable to do so.
Statutory Sick Pay
- To be paid to all workers from the first day of absence (no longer fourth), as well as removing the Lower Earnings Limit, at a rate of 80% of weekly earnings or the flat rate (£123.25), whichever is lower.
- There will also be a transitional period to protect pay for those on sick leave before the 6th April, should the implementation of the changes have otherwise reduced their pay. This period would end when they return to work, their entitlement ends or in a handful of other cases.
Also, in April 2026
Fair Work Agency
- The Fair Work Agency will be established this month but will be introduced in phases with timescales and further information to follow in due course.
Redundancy
- The maximum protective award a tribunal can make when a business has failed to follow their obligations on collective redundancy will be increased from 90 to 180 days’ pay.
Whistleblowing protections
- Sexual harassment will become a ‘qualifying disclosure’, meaning protection from detriment and unfair dismissal for whistleblowers making a sexual harassment disclosure.
Gender pay gap and menopause action plans
- Employers can voluntarily publish these plans from April. They will become mandatory for some employers in 2027.
Trade unions
- Simplifying how a trade union can gain recognition in a workplace.
- Allowing trade union members to vote electronically.
Later changes
There are of course many more changes set to come in October 2026 and beyond. We’ll be sure to update and remind you of these in the upcoming months
