Comments

In our article last year, Employment Rights Bill key provisions, we included an indication of when each of the measures was likely to come into force. For the majority, this was stated to be "not before 2026", as well as being subject to consultation. The government's Roadmap on implementing the Employment Rights Bill gives an update on both the consultation timelines and the proposed implementation dates. This is set out at pages 8-10. The following implementation dates are likely to be of particular interest:

April 2026:

• Collective redundancy – increase in protective award. The maximum amount of the protective award will be doubled from 90 days' pay to 180 days.
• Fair Work Agency body established. This agency will have broad powers in relation to, for example, holiday pay compliance. It remains to be seen what its priorities will be and what resources it will have.
• Statutory trade union recognition process. This will be simplified and protections against unfair practices during the process will be strengthened.

October 2026:

• "Fire and rehire" – due to become automatically unfair, except in limited circumstances where the contractual variation is required to eliminate, prevent or significantly mitigate the effect of any financial difficulties impacting the business carrying on as a going concern and where there was no reasonable alternative. In the meantime, the government will consult on these proposals this autumn.
• Duty to prevent sexual harassment of employees – this will become a duty to take "all" reasonable steps. Under the Bill, the government will also gain the power to specify steps that are to be regarded as "reasonable". However, this power won't come into force until sometime in 2027.
• Third-party harassment of employees – protection to be introduced. This will apply to all protected characteristics. (Except marriage and civil partnership status and pregnancy/maternity, as with existing harassment protections. These matters are dealt with differently under the Equality Act 2010.)
• Employment tribunal time limits – to be increased from three to six months.
• Trade union access – will be strengthened to include physical and digital access rights.

2027 (month not specified):

• Collective redundancy consultation – threshold to be broadened. The government's proposed threshold has varied during the passage of the Bill through Parliament. The current proposal is that collective consultation will be triggered as it is currently (i.e., where 20 or more employees are to be dismissed at one establishment) OR where a threshold number of employees is reached in a case where employees are being made redundant at more than one establishment. The threshold number is not yet stated but could be calculated by numbers of employees or as, for example, a certain percentage of the workforce. The government will conduct consultation in this area this winter/early 2026.
• Flexible working – requirement that a refusal of a request be reasonable, based on one of the existing statutory grounds for refusal. This will also be the subject of consultation this winter/early 2026.
• New rights for zero hours and agency workers to be introduced. This is a complex package of rights to guaranteed hours, to minimum notifications of shifts and cancellations, and associated payments. A lot of the detail is yet to be confirmed. There will be consultation this autumn.
• Unfair dismissal to become a day-one right. The government will commence consultation on this measure this summer/autumn. This will include consultation on the regime that should apply within an employee's probationary period.