With the UK Employment Rights Act bringing some big changes, we're here to help organisations, SMEs and HR stay ahead of UK employment law - now and in the future. This hub is built to guide you through the latest best practices for protecting your business and supporting your people.
Whether it's understanding new employment rights or updating workplace policies, we've got the resources you need to help create a compliant and positive work environment.
Effective from 6 April 2024:
As of April 2024, all employees have a statutory right to request flexible working from day one in the role, instead of waiting six months (26 weeks). Employers must handle requests reasonably, consult with the employee, and respond within two months. They can still refuse, but only for one of the recognised business reasons – and they should be ready to explain their decision clearly.
The change is designed to make flexible working feel more like the norm than a perk, and it sits alongside a wider programme of reforms that are expected to keep pushing work–life balance up the agenda over the next few years.
Effective from 2027:
From 2027, further changes will strengthen flexible working rights, including:
Employers will have to hold a consultation meeting with employees to discuss flexible working requests before they can reject them.
When rejecting a request, it won't be enough to just give one of the eight business reasons, employers must also prove that it's reasonable to refuse on those grounds. The explanation must be provided in writing.
Effective from 6 April 2024:
Pregnant employees and certain new parents have an extended period of protection in a redundancy situation. This runs from when an employee tells their employer they’re pregnant or starts maternity, adoption or shared parental leave, through that leave and for up to around 18 months from the child’s birth or placement.
During this protected period, if there is a suitable alternative vacancy, it must be offered to them as a priority before other employees at risk of redundancy.
The Employment Rights Act also confirms stronger dismissal protections for pregnant women and new mothers on top of these redundancy rules. A commencement date is yet to be confirmed but the changes are expected in 2027.
Effective from October 2024:
Since October 2024, all employers have been required to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace. This includes:
Keeping policy and risk assessments up to date
Providing regular training for staff and leadership
Having clear communication and documentation strategies
Using tools like Breathe to manage policy communication and documentation, helping keep your workplace safe and compliant
Although these duties apply employers of all sizes, growing SMEs in particular should see these steps as best practice for building a respectful, inclusive and legally compliant workplace
Effective from 1 October 2026:
From 1 October 2026, sexual harassment duties for employers increase again.
Employers will be required to take all reasonable steps, rather than just reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment. It won't be enough to just have a policy and respond when something goes wrong. Employers will need to be able to show they've actively anticipated risks, planned for them and taken practical steps to prevent sexual harassment before it happens.
Employers will also become directly liable if a worker is harassed by a third party where the employer hasn't taken all reasonable steps to prevent it. This includes any type of harassment (not just sex) from customers, clients, contractors or patients. This change means thinking beyond your own team and taking steps to manage risks from public-facing interactions too.
Effective from 6 April 2026:
After 6 April 2026, employers have a legal duty to keep adequate records for holiday and holiday pay for up to six years.
This requirement will be monitored by the Fair Work Agency (more details below).
Effective from 6 April 2026:
Under the Employment Rights Act, employees will have day-one access to key types of family leave, including paternity leave, unpaid parental leave and a new right to bereavement leave. The aim is to make it easier for people to balance work and family life from their very first day in the role.
Currently, statutory parental bereavement leave gives eligible parents up to two weeks’ leave, paid at £187.18 per week (from April 2025) or 90% of average weekly earnings, whichever is lower.
From 6 April 2026, this pay rate increases from £194.32 per week. From this date, the Employment Rights Act also gives employees the day-one right to unpaid bereavement leave for a wider range of losses – including some relationships and pregnancy losses that aren’t currently covered.
Effective from 6 April 2026:
SSP is payable from the first full day of sickness absence, removing the previous three-day waiting period.
The Lower Earnings Limit is no longer a condition for SSP.*
SSP is accessible from day-one of illness for all eligible employees.
These changes are designed to extend sick pay protection to around 1.3 million lower-paid workers. Employers should prepare for higher sickness absence costs and update their policies and payroll processes.
*Keep in mind that the Lower Earnings Limit will still apply to other statutory payments like Statutory Maternity Pay, Statutory Paternity Pay, Statutory Shared Parental Pay and Statutory Adoption Pay.
Effective from 6 April 2026:
From 6 April 2026, reporting sexual harassment at work is formally classified as a qualifying disclosure under whistleblowing law. This is a significant shift - previously, sexual harassment complaints were typically handled through grievance procedures, but they didn't carry the same whistleblowing protections.
From this date:
Workers who report sexual harassment are protected from detriment and unfair dismissal in the same way as any other whistleblower.
These changes apply to all workers, including contractors and agency workers.
What this means in practice is that employers need to review their whistleblowing policies to make sure they explicitly reference sexual harassment as a category of qualifying disclosure. They should also make clear that NDAs can't be used to prevent protected disclosures.
Breathe makes it easy to store and share your policies in one secure place, so everyone knows exactly where to find them.
Effective from 6 April 2026:
If you're making 20 or more redundancies at one site within a 90-day period and don't follow the proper collective consultation process, you already face a significant financial penalty. From 6 April 2026, that penalty doubles.
This means the maximum protective award increases from 90 days' pay per employee to 180 days' pay per employee.
Effective from 7 April 2026:
From 7 April 2026, a new government body called the Fair Work Agency will be responsible for making sure businesses are complying with employment law, focusing at first on everyday basics like pay, holiday, sick pay, fair treatment and record-keeping.
It can inspect workplaces without prior complaints, demand documents, issue Notices of Underpayment (recovering up to six years’ arrears plus penalties of up to 200% per underpayment), publicly name non-compliant employers, take tribunal cases on behalf of workers, impose legally binding orders to change practices, and recover its own enforcement costs.
Employers should:
Review pay and holiday calculations
Tighten HR and payroll records
Update contracts and policies
Clarify that staff know how to raise concerns
Check agency/umbrella arrangements
Brief managers on what the FWA is and what it looks for.
For more information on the Fair Work Agency, read our blog. And to find out if your business is prepared, take our free quiz.
Effective from 1 October 2026:
From 1 October 2026, the Employment Rights Act introduces a new category of automatic unfair dismissal covering most 'fire and rehire' situations. In practice, it will usually be automatically unfair to dismiss an employee for refusing changes to core terms – such as pay, pensions, working hours, shift patterns or time off – unless the change is genuinely unavoidable due to serious financial difficulties.
Employers will still be able to make legitimate changes, but the bar will be higher. SMEs will need clear business reasons and a well-documented process, including consultation with staff, exploring alternatives and communicating openly about any proposed contract changes.
Effective from 1 October 2026:
From 1 October 2026, under the Employment Rights Act, employers will be required to make it clear in employment contracts that employees have the right to join a trade union.
This is designed to improve transparency around union membership and give workers more confidence to join and take part in union activity if they choose to.
Effective from 1 October 2026:
From 1 October 2026, employers will no longer be able to create or change a tipping policy without consulting their workers. While this used to be encouraged, it is becoming a requirement under the Employment Rights Act.
The Act will also enforce a three-year review cycle, meaning that tipping policies must be reviewed at least every three years. Workers must be consulted during the review and be given a summary of the consultation.
If employers do not comply with these requirements, workers will be able to make a claim to an employment tribunal.
Effective from 1 October 2026:
From 1 October 2026, employees will have six months to bring claims to employment tribunals, rather than only three.
For employers, this means disputes you thought had been resolved could resurface further down the line, making diligent, consistent record-keeping more important than ever.
Effective from 1 January 2027
The government has stepped back from its earlier plan to make unfair dismissal protection a day-one right. Instead, the current two-year qualifying period for unfair dismissal is being reduced to six months.
This means more employees gain unfair dismissal protection earlier in their employment, so it’s a good idea for employers to keep an eye on how they manage probation, feedback and documentation during those first six months.
Expected in 2027:
The Employment Rights Act introduces a new day-one right to at least one week of unpaid bereavement leave for employees who experience the loss of a loved one, including pregnancy loss before 24 weeks.
The official roadmap indicates that the new entitlement is expected to take effect in 2027, using the usual common commencement dates of 6 April or 1 October. Until then, employers should keep an eye on government and Acas updates and start reviewing internal policies, procedures and manager guidance so they can update them quickly once the final rules and start date are confirmed.
Scheduled for 2027:
The Employment Rights Act has confirmed that:
If a worker consistently works set hours over a 12-week period, employers will need to offer them a contract that reflects that. The employee will be able to choose to stay on zero-hours terms - but the offer has to be made.
Employers must give workers reasonable notice of shifts and provide compensation for any shifts that are cancelled or reduced at short notice.
These changes are expected to come into force in 2027 and will also apply to low-hours and agency workers.
For a full breakdown of these changes and what you need to do, take a look at our zero-hours contracts guide.
Expected Spring 2027 for businesses with 250+ employees:
Large employers will face tougher reporting requirements including:
Enhanced gender pay data disclosures
Mandatory menopause action plans to support women’s health and career longevity
These steps are part of a wider movement toward workplace equality and inclusivity, with gender pay gap reporting and menopause action plans fast becoming everyday expectations.
It's also best practice for all organisations to review and prepare for these measures, especially those in a growth phase, as early adoption can support long-term equity and sustainability.
Expected in 2027 for businesses with 250+ employees:
Pay gap reporting is expected to extend to ethnicity and disability in a similar way to gender pay gap requirements for businesses with over 250 employees as part of the draft Equality (Race and Disability) Bill.
The bill is also likely to extend equal pay rights to protect workers from experiencing discrimination.
To stay compliant, employers will need to review and update:
HR policies and employee handbooks
Employment contracts and onboarding documentation, including pay, responsibilities, and employee benefits
Internal training and communication plans
With phased changes throughout 2026 and 2027, now is the time to audit and future-proof your policies.
These reforms place a greater emphasis on proactive compliance, making regular audits and policy updates essential.
HR can feel overwhelming when you’re juggling people, policies and processes. Our free guide shows how HR software helps small businesses stay organised, cut down on admin, and stay compliant without the stress.
In this guide, you’ll learn:
How HR software helps with employment law compliance
Why moving beyond spreadsheets saves time and reduces errors
Ways automation can ease everyday HR admin
What to look for in HR software as your business grows
This section provides an overview of employment law for employers. Employment law governs the rights and responsibilities of employers and employees. From contracts and discrimination to redundancy, grievance procedures, and flexible working, keeping up-to-date is essential to avoid risks and support workplace wellbeing.
UK employment law is detailed, but accessible with the right support - especially when changes occur twice yearly in April and October.
That’s why getting some good employment law advice is super important for everyone involved. It helps both employers and employees get a clear picture of what they can and cannot do in the workplace.
The UK has a pretty solid set of rules when it comes to employment law, covering all the big topics like unfair dismissal, working hours, and holiday entitlement.
Plus, there are employment law services out there (just like the Breathe Partner network) ready to give expert advice and support on all sorts of issues, so both employers and employees can feel confident about their rights and obligations.
We’ve also got lots of guides and templates, to help make it easier to get to grips with what employment law updates are out there.
Employment contracts are a big deal when it comes to employment law. They spell out the essential details of what both employers and employees are signing up for.
Every employee must receive a written statement of employment outlining:
Job title
Working hours
Salary
Leave entitlements (including holidays, maternity leave, paternity leave, and sick pay)
Benefits
Trade union rights (forthcoming)
Changes to employment terms must follow consultation and notice protocols under the Employment Rights Act 1996.
These contracts should cover the basics like job title, what the job involves, and how many hours you’ll be working, so everyone knows what’s expected.
Employers have to hand over a written statement that lays out the important stuff like pay, holiday entitlement, benefits, and how much notice you need to give if you’re leaving.
If there are any changes to the contract, employers need to play fair, give you a heads-up, and explain what’s happening to keep things clear and honest.
If you want to switch up your working hours or maybe work from home, you can ask for flexible working arrangements. Employers have to take these requests seriously and let you know why if they can’t make it work.
Some contracts might also have clauses to keep things confidential and protect company secrets.
Sticking to UK employment law is crucial, and employers need to make sure their contracts follow rules on discrimination and equality.
If you’re looking for advice on employment contracts, employment law experts from the Breathe Partner network, are there to help you understand your rights and what you’re signing up for, so you’re in the know and covered.
Discrimination and equality are important parts of employment law, and it’s up to employers to make sure there’s no unfair treatment at work.
Everyone should be treated fairly, no matter their age, gender, race, or if they have a disability.
The Equality Act 2010 is like a rulebook for employers, showing them how to handle discrimination and equality.
This protects against workplace discrimination based on:
Age
Gender
Race
Disability
Pregnancy and maternity
Employers must provide equal opportunities, pay, and fair treatment, backed by appropriate training and procedures.
Employers need to make sure everyone gets equal pay and chances, and they can’t treat anyone differently because of pregnancy or maternity.
If employees see or experience any discrimination or harassment, they can speak up, and employers have to act fast to sort it out.
To keep the workplace fair and welcoming, employers can offer training and resources on these topics.
Employment law experts are there to give advice and tips on sticking to UK employment law, helping employers build a respectful and fair work environment.
Employees can also find lots of resources and support, like online guides and helplines, to get a better grip on their rights and what to do about discrimination and equality.
Our hub is regularly updated with the latest legal insights, legislative developments, employment law and practical advice aligned with the latest changes.
With our expert guidance and actionable tips, you can confidently embrace these different types of updates, ensuring your business stays compliant and your people valued.
For tailored advice and support, contact employment law or HR professionals - you can reach out to the Breathe Partner network.
Discover up-to-date news, expert blogs, comprehensive guides, informative webinars and practical tools that make handling legislative changes and UK employment law easier.
With us, you can focus on growing your business while staying compliant with the latest rules – whether you're preparing for upcoming changes or planning for the future.
Navigating the complexities of employment law can be challenging for both employers and employees.
Seeking employment law advice from a qualified specialist is important to ensure compliance with relevant laws and regulations. Employers and employees can conveniently receive expert employment law advice via phone, making support accessible and immediate.
Ask to talk to one of Breathe Partners for employment law advice.
For employers, this advice can help avoid costly legal disputes and protect the business’s reputation. For employees, it ensures their rights are safeguarded and they receive fair treatment in the workplace.
Employment law advice covers a broad spectrum of topics, including employment contracts, redundancy, discrimination, and non-disclosure agreements (NDAs).
Specialists in employment law provide guidance on various employment-related matters, such as drafting and reviewing employment contracts, developing workplace policies, and handling procedures.
They also represent both employers and employees in disputes, including employment tribunal claims, offering a comprehensive resource for navigating employment law complexities.
Contracts and agreements form the basis of employment relationships, outlining the terms and conditions of employment, such as working hours, holiday entitlement, and pay.
Employers must ensure that these contracts comply with relevant laws and regulations, including the Employment Rights Act 1996 and the Equality Act 2010. TUPE regulations should also be considered, as they protect employee rights during business transfers and ensure employees retain their terms and conditions when a company or service is transferred to a new employer.
Employment contracts often include various clauses, such as confidentiality clauses and non-disclosure agreements (NDAs).
These clauses are designed to protect sensitive information, including trade secrets and business strategies. But it is worth noting, that the use of NDAs and confidentiality clauses has sparked controversy, particularly when used to silence victims of harassment or abuse.
Employers need to balance the protection of business interests with the rights and wellbeing of their employees.
Employee rights and protections are fundamental to creating a fair and safe working environment.
Employees are entitled to various rights, including the right to a safe workplace, equal pay, and protection from discrimination.
Employers must comply with laws such as the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and the Equality Act 2010 to ensure these rights are upheld.
Employment law protections apply to employees in England, Wales, and Scotland, ensuring that members of the workforce across these regions are covered.
Additionally, employees are protected from unfair dismissal and redundancy.
Employers have to follow a fair process when dismissing an employee or making them redundant, providing a clear rationale and allowing for an appeal process.
These protections are designed to ensure that employees are treated fairly and that their rights are respected throughout their employment.
Stay ahead of the curve with our free 2026-2027 employment law changes e‑book.
From sick pay and parental leave to flexible working and zero-hours contracts, we break down what’s coming and when - with clear timelines, practical tips and a checklist to help you stay compliant and confident.
This blog covers what the Fair Work Agency is, what it can do, and the practical steps worth taking to protect your business.
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Checklists, guides and letter templates, designed to make even the most challenging aspects of redundancy more manageable.
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The ultimate guide to zero-hours contracts. From holiday pay entitlement to sick pay, notice periods and more,
A deep dive into the five headline changes, when they’re expected to come into force, and the practical takeaways you need to know.
Understand how to manage an employee grievance correctly under UK employment law, follow fair procedures, and protect your business.
This free HR compliance checklist lists the key employment law changes already in force, plus the updates we expect between now and 2027.
We give you a clearer picture of the biggest Employment Rights Act changes and practical advice on applying the new rules in your workplace.
Employment tribunals experts, Dan Jenkins and Tracey Osmond from Access2 HR tackle real questions from employers about employment tribunals.
HR professionals, Dan and Tracey provide practical steps on how SME business owners can avoid employment tribunals and stay compliant.
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