In October 2024, the UK Government published the Employment Rights Bill, which paves the way for significant reforms to UK employment law. The Bill is in its final stages of Parliament and the reforms are expected to be phased in starting from April 2026. The much-publicised reduction of the service requirement for unfair dismissal claims, from two years to six months, is not expected to take effect until 2027 (see below).
Employment Rights Bill
What does it mean for employers?
Overview
The Government has also pledged to introduce other employment law reforms separately, including:
- Ethnicity and disability pay gap reporting requirements for employers with at least 250 employees (the Government ran a consultation on the proposed detail of the reporting requirements which ended on 10 June 2025).
- Introducing a "single worker status" under which all workers would have full employment rights.
- Reviewing the current parental leave system (commenced July 2025 and expected to continue until early 2027).
- Examining carers' leave and considering whether it should be paid.
