As workers and employers prepare for the largest employment reforms in a generation, the Work Foundation at Lancaster University hosted an online event exploring the key Employment Rights Act changes due in 2026.

After months of Parliamentary ‘ping pong’, the Act passed into law in late 2025, triggering a two-year implementation period for 28 wide-ranging reforms. Over half of these measures will take effect in 2026, with many details still to be shaped through consultations, new codes of practice and secondary legislation.

Employment Rights Act timeline (January 2026)

For many workers and senior leaders, these will be the biggest changes to employment law in their working lives. Following a presentation by George Williams on the key details of the Act, Ben Harrison (Director of the Work Foundation) chaired a panel to discuss how organisations and workers can prepare.

1. New leave rights can benefit workers, but employers must act now to deliver them

From April 2026, Statutory Sick Pay will be payable from day one of sickness absence, and eligibility will be broadened to include workers previously excluded due to low earnings or irregular hours – benefiting over a million low-paid workers.

These changes could have wider implications for job quality, Alice Martin from the Work Foundation stated, “Low-paid workers, on the whole, take less leave across a whole range of leave types, often because some of those rights to leave aren’t paid.” She highlighted that making leave both accessible and paid is vital to tackle inequality in the labour market.

Some employers are already leading the way, such as Abraham Moon, a Leeds based textile company. Claire Burns, their People Director, emphasised the positive impact they’d already observed by getting ahead of the ERA reforms and strengthening sick pay provisions for their workers. In particular, she was clear on the importance of workers being supported to take time to recover when they fall ill, and reducing the risk of contagious sickness spreading throughout the workforce.

Alongside SSP, the panel discussed new Day One rights to paternity leave and the expansion of unpaid parental leave. Laura McFadyen, an employment lawyer at Stephen Scown LLP, stressed that while these rights represent progress for family rights, the detail will matter for employers introducing the new measures. She stated early planning will be essential, “Organisations need to think now about how these rights will work in practice – from updating systems, to training managers, to embedding new processes.”

2. Collective protections can help organisations rethink how they listen to employees

New measures due in April simplify trade union recognition, and in October there will be strengthened trade union access rights and fire-and-rehire practices will be banned.

Sampson Low from UNISON stated that he believes recognising trade unions is good for businesses and workers, “It helps with collective decision-making and gives workers a structured way to raise concerns.” He argued that these changes are not just about rights on paper but about fostering meaningful engagement between employers and their workforce.

Claire Burns, recognised some employers may be concerned, but stated that “for organisations with strong engagement already in place, these reforms are an affirmation. For others, it’s a call to rethink how they involve and listen to employees.”

The theme of consultation continued with the ban on fire-and-rehire ban – when an employer dismisses employees and then immediately offers to re-engage them on new, often less favourable terms and conditions. Government research shows that this affects 125,000 workers annually, and reforms aim to outlaw these practices but for the most extenuating of circumstances. The panel agreed that meaningful consultation and good faith dialogue must be at the heart of any contractual changes for employees.

3. Employers need to get ahead on sexual harassment and unfair dismissal changes

In October, a strengthened duty on employers will be introduced stating they must take all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment at work and reinstate liability for third-party harassment. This moves the UK closer to a proactive, prevention-focused model rather than one centred on redress after the fact.

Laura McFadyen highlighted the practical challenges, “Having a policy is one thing, but employers will need to show what they have actually done to prevent harassment – from risk assessments to effective reporting and response mechanisms.”

The panel also explored changes to unfair dismissal protections, including a reduction in the qualifying period from two years to six months. Work Foundation analysis indicates this could reduce severely insecure work by over a million people, and see millions more workers move into secure work.

Workers with six months’ continuous service from 1 January 2027 will be protected, meaning those hired before 1 July 2026 will qualify immediately. Claire Burns said employers can act now to prepare: “We’ve already changed our probationary periods to six months to match.” She added that Abraham Moon is tightening recruitment practices and training managers to deliver more meaningful probation reviews for both parties.

4. Enforcement can ensure rights translate into real improvements for workers

In order to enforce worker protections, the Government is establishing a new Fair Work Agency (FWA), set to launch in April 2026. The Agency will bring together powers currently dispersed across multiple bodies, but questions remain over how effectively it will be resourced in the future.

Sampson Low argued that consolidating enforcement functions can strengthen rights in practice: “If workers don’t feel confident those rights will be enforced, they won’t exercise them.” But he also emphasised the importance of the wider enforcement ecosystem, including trade unions and ACAS, in ensuring rights translate into real improvements for working lives.

Claire Burns noted that effective enforcement depends on clarity and consistency. Employers, she said, need straightforward guidance and timely engagement from regulators to build confidence and compliance.

Alice Martin described enforcement as a “critical piece of the puzzle” — one that must work in harmony with cultural change rather than in isolation. She added that the Fair Work Agency can signal expectations but also support learning and improvement across workplaces, especially in high risk sectors such as construction, social care and hospitality.

New employment legislation provides a big opportunity

The roll out of measures in the Employment Rights Act during 2026 represents a seismic shift in the UK’s labour law landscape. But it was clear from the discussion that the changes offer substantial opportunities for employers and workers to engage together to deliver more inclusive, secure and productive workplaces.

To realise these opportunities, early preparation and staff engagement will be particularly important – especially to support managers who will be at the front line of delivering changes.

And while 2026 is going to be a vital year for employment rights in the UK, much of the detail underpinning wider changes in 2027 and beyond is still to be determined via a range of consultation processes. The Work Foundation will be convening colleagues again later this year to discuss those reforms, and in the meantime you can find links to relevant consultation pages to help shape how the changes will be designed below.

Watch the full discussion on YouTube

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Further information

• UK Government factsheets on the Employment Rights Act
• ACAS guidance on upcoming Employment Rights Act changes.

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