The Employment Rights Act 2025 has now begun reshaping the UK employment landscape, with the first wave of reforms taking effect from April 2026. These changes apply to organisations of every size and sector, marking the start of a multi‑year programme of updates to workers’ rights.

For HR teams, people managers and senior leaders, the message is clear: the compliance phase has arrived.

Key Changes Now in Force

1. Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) reforms

Two long‑standing barriers to SSP eligibility have been removed:

• the lower earnings limit, and
• the waiting period before SSP begins.

This widens access and requires employers to review payroll processes, sickness policies and manager guidance.

2. New day‑one rights for parents

Employees now gain:

• day‑one entitlement to paternity leave, and
• day‑one entitlement to unpaid parental leave.

This shift strengthens early‑stage parental support and will require updates to onboarding, family‑friendly policies and manager training.

3. Strengthened protections and new enforcement mechanisms

The Act also introduces:

• enhanced whistleblowing protection for disclosures relating to sexual harassment
• changes to the maximum period of the collective redundancy protective award
• voluntary equality action plans for larger employers
• updates to rules on working with trade unions
• the creation of the Fair Work Agency, a new enforcement body with a broad remit

Together, these changes signal a stronger regulatory environment and a greater emphasis on fair work.

More Reforms Are Coming

The April 2026 changes are only the beginning. Further updates are scheduled for October 2026 and into 2027, covering areas such as:

• unfair dismissal
• fire and rehire
• flexible working
• zero‑hours contracts

Employers should expect continued evolution of the employment framework and ensure their people strategies, policies and governance structures are ready to adapt.

Final Thought

The Employment Rights Act 2025 represents one of the most significant shifts in UK employment law in over a decade. For HR and organisational leaders, the priority now is to move from awareness to action i.e. updating policies, equipping managers and ensuring compliance across the organisation.