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This page is your go‑to hub for the latest updates and information on the ERA, as well as what your business needs to do to prepare for the changes. It brings together the latest developments, REC resources and opportunities for members to engage with the policy agenda.
The latest on the ERA Key REC resources 12-month legal timeline
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Statutory Sick Pay, paternity leave, unpaid parental leave, and the right to request flexible working will all become day‑one rights from April 2026.
The qualifying period for unfair dismissal will drop from two years to six months, and the cap on unfair dismissal compensation will be removed. This increases risk and expands worker protections.
Workers with regular working patterns will gain rights to guaranteed hours contracts, plus protections around notice of shifts and cancellation pay.
The Fair Work Agency will merge the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate, GLAA and National Minimum Wage enforcement
With strengthened enforcement under the FWA, penalties for issues such as underpayment, faulty record‑keeping, and other breaches will increase. Recruiters will face greater scrutiny over payroll accuracy, working time records, and agency worker protections working time records, and agency worker protections
Revise templates to reflect day one rights (2026), SSP changes (2026) and guaranteed hours obligations (2027) once the full regulations have been published.
Check out the REC's template documents
With unfair dismissal risks applying after six months, recruiters can support clients with developing robust early stage performance documentation and fair procedures.
Explore the REC's legal guides
Provide up to date briefings to hiring managers on dismissal procedures, shift cancellation rules, and emerging ERA reforms to mitigate legal risk.
Actively monitor upcoming ERA reforms and related regulatory changes using resources such as REC Legal news and views, REC 12-month legal timeline, as well as our REC campaigns updates.
Get your free Employment Rights Act Crib Sheet and stay ahead of the 2026 reforms with everything recruiters need to know about zero-hours changes, sick pay, and new enforcement rules
Keep on top of the latest legal updates and what they mean for your recruitment business with the REC's 12-month legal timeline
As we move further into Labour’s government, they have begun consulting on a number of topics regarding their manifesto commitments. This includes the Employment Rights Bill, changes to the NHS and the new Industrial Strategy. To help members keep abreast of the latest developments, all the consultations that have been released by the new government are collated below, with links to the government’s website for more information. As and when the REC has submitted our own response to each consultation, these will also be added to keep members informed of our work on these issues.
On the table below, consultations specifically related to the Employment Rights Bill and wider Plan to Make Work Pay are highlighted in italics.
| Consultation | Opening Date | Closing Date | REC response summary | Full REC response |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Invest 2035: the UK’s modern industrial strategy | 14.10.24 | 24.11.24 | To be successful, any Industrial Strategy must go hand in hand with considering our workforce. It must make skills policy more suited to the needs of our economy, but also look beyond skills to consider production and job design, investment and infrastructure such as transport, childcare and the immigration system. | Final Submission |
| Change NHS | 21.10.24 | 02.12.24 | Agency work is crucial to a properly functioning NHS as it can play an important role in supporting the substantive workforce. NHS procurement needs to be reformed to allow for the cost-effective recruitment of agency staff, with the overreliance on bank or off-framework staff driving up costs to the taxpayer. Reviewing the current frameworks to allow effective on-framework supply will reduce staffing costs overall. | Final Submission |
| Making Work Pay: the application of zero hours contracts measures to agency workers | 21.10.24 | 02.12.24 | Agency workers should be exempt from the government's new proposals to limit the use of ZHCs to avoid unintentionally undermining the temporary labour market. People choose to work as agency workers for the flexibility these contracts can allow them, so way of working needs to be preserved. If a full exemption is not possible, then the government needs to ensure responsibilities and liabilities sit with the correct parties in the supply chain to minimise the impact of these changes. | Final Submission |
| Making Work Pay: Strengthening Statutory Sick Pay | 21.10.24 | 04.12.24 | The government needs to consider the impact of this on agencies, and how it can practically be applied to temporary workers who have irregular working patterns. This needs to be coupled with clarity on how agencies can limit exposure to ongoing sick pay for temporary workers to avoid the new SSP entitlement being exploited. Additionally, Government should make available provisions to help businesses cover these costs, especially at a time when cost pressures are biting hard. | Final Submission |
| Making Work Pay: creating a modern framework for industrial relations | 21.10.24 | 02.12.24 | Reforms to Trade Union rights should be welcomed provided they are designed to foster better workplace relations. There needs to be a balance struck between worker rights and ensuring businesses are able to manage their workforce planning. | REC has chosen not to submit a response to this consultation |
| Making Work Pay: collective redundancy and fire and rehire | 21.10.24 | 02.12.24 | Clearer policies and processes around fire and rehire and redundancy are important to workplace relations. However, it is important that these processes remain viable as last resort courses of action in order to ensure businesses are able to continue operation in worst case scenarios. | REC has chosen not to submit a response to this consultation |
Every year we host over 60 events for REC members and stakeholders, from our flagship annual conference and award ceremony, to legal seminars, business surgeries and member forums – all designed to give you the inside track.
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