Is your business compliant with the new employment law?
The Employment Rights Act 2025 is the biggest change to UK employment law in a generation. Phased rollout is already underway. Use our free tools to check what you need to do and when.
What's changing and when
The Act received Royal Assent on 18 December 2025. Implementation is phased:
April 2026 — Already in force
- Statutory Sick Pay reformed — available from day 1, lower earnings limit removed (rate: £123.25/week)
- Paternity leave available from day 1 of employment (paternity pay still requires 26 weeks' service)
- Fair Work Agency launched 7 April 2026 — single enforcement body for employment rights
- Flexible working requests — day-1 right, employer must consult before refusing
October 2026 — Coming soon
- Zero-hours shift notice and cancellation payment rights
- Extended time limits for employment tribunal claims (3 months → 6 months) — expected
- Trade union access and recognition changes
2027 onwards
- Unfair dismissal qualifying period reduced to 6 months (from 1 January 2027, no lighter-touch process)
- "Fire and rehire" restrictions — automatically unfair in almost all cases (from 1 January 2027)
- Zero-hours right to guaranteed hours after reference period (expected 2027)
- Mandatory menopause action plans for employers with 250+ employees (spring 2027)
- Enhanced pregnancy and maternity dismissal protections (expected 2027)
Free compliance tools
Interactive tools to help you understand your obligations.
SSP Calculator
Calculate Statutory Sick Pay under the new day-1 rules. No more waiting days, no lower earnings limit.
Use tool →Dismissal Risk Checker
Check if an employee can claim unfair dismissal under current rules and the new 6-month qualifying period (from 1 January 2027).
Use tool →Zero-Hours Contract Checker
Check your obligations when the guaranteed hours rules take effect in 2027. Shift notice rights arrive October 2026.
Coming 2027 →Compliance Checklist
A step-by-step checklist of everything your business needs to do, personalised to your size and sector.
Use tool →Who needs to act?
1.4M
Employer businesses in the UK affected by these changes
Day 1
SSP and paternity leave rights now apply from the first day of employment
2025-28
Phased rollout — new obligations arriving every 6 months through 2028
Small businesses (1-49 employees): You're most at risk. You probably don't have an HR department. Your employment contracts likely need updating. Your SSP calculations have changed. Your dismissal procedures need reviewing.
Medium businesses (50-249 employees): You need to audit your zero-hours contracts, update your sick pay policies, and consider menopause action plans (mandatory only for 250+ employees from spring 2027, but best practice for all).
Larger employers: Trade union access rules are changing. Fire and rehire restrictions are tightening. Tribunal time limits are doubling.
Plain English guides
Every major change explained without the jargon.
Statutory Sick Pay from Day 1 — what it means for your business
The lower earnings limit is gone. Waiting days are gone. Every employee qualifies from their first day. Here's exactly what changed and what you need to do.
Unfair dismissal qualifying period — what changes on 1 January 2027
From 1 January 2027, employees can claim unfair dismissal after 6 months — no lighter-touch process. The 2-year rule applies until then. Here's what to prepare now.
Zero-hours contracts — what's changing in October 2026
Shift notice and cancellation payment rights arrive October 2026. The right to guaranteed hours is expected in 2027. If you use zero-hours contracts, here's how to prepare.