Employment Rights Act 2025

The Employment Rights Act 2025 is an Act of the UK Parliament that strengthens workers' rights in areas including sick pay, family leave, unfair dismissal, harassment, zero-hours work and trade union rights. It received Royal Assent on 18 December 2025, and its measures are being brought into force in phases between 2026 and the end of 2027.

What is already in force

• 6 April 2026: Statutory Sick Pay from the first day of absence, with the lower earnings limit removed; paternity leave and unpaid parental leave became day-one rights; the maximum protective award for collective redundancy doubled to 180 days' pay.
• 7 April 2026: the Fair Work Agency was set up to enforce employment rights.
• 1 October 2026: the time limit for employment tribunal claims was extended from three to six months.

What comes next

The government's timeline, last updated on 22 October 2026, sets out the following dates, which remain subject to parliamentary processes:

• 30 October 2026: employers must take all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment, including by third parties.
• 1 January 2027: the qualifying period for unfair dismissal falls from two years to six months, and the cap on compensatory awards is removed.
• March 2027: new protections against fire and rehire.
• April 2027: bereavement leave, including for pregnancy loss.
• October 2027: changes to flexible working and stronger dismissal protection for pregnant women and new mothers.
• December 2027: regulation of umbrella companies.

Rights for zero-hours workers, including guaranteed hours and payment for cancelled shifts, will also apply to agency workers. Their start date will be set after consultation.

Relevance to life sciences employers

Pharma and medtech companies often rely on field-based teams, contract and outsourced staff, and agency or umbrella arrangements. The six-month unfair dismissal threshold changes how probation and early performance management are handled, while the zero-hours, agency and umbrella company provisions affect flexible staffing models. The harassment duty extends to third parties, which matters for staff who work on customer and NHS sites.

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