As part of our commitment to keeping clients informed of the latest employment law developments, we wanted to highlight several important changes under the Employment Rights Act 2025 and associated regulations that took effect on 6 April 2026.

Family and parental rights

• Paternity leave: The minimum service requirement for statutory paternity leave has been removed. This applies to leave for birth, adoption, and surrogacy.
• Bereaved partner leave: New regulations provide up to 52 weeks of leave for bereaved employees in the first year of a child’s life or adoption. Bereaved partners may take up to 8 weeks’ leave following the death or return of a child.
• Unpaid parental leave: The minimum service requirement has been removed for unpaid parental leave.

Redundancy

• Protective awards: Maximum protective awards for collective redundancies have increased to 180 days’ pay for dismissals on or after 6 April 2026.

Wages and benefits

• Statutory Sick Pay (SSP): SSP is now payable from the first day of incapacity, with the lower earnings limit removed.

Whistleblowing

• Sexual harassment is now recognised as a type of wrongdoing under protected disclosures.

Working time

• Annual leave records: Employers must maintain records demonstrating compliance with annual leave and holiday pay obligations under the updated Working Time Regulations.

These changes represent significant updates to employee rights and employer obligations. Employers should review their policies and procedures to ensure compliance from the commencement date - 6 April 2026.

For more information, please contact me.