The amendments to the Employment Rights Bill 2025 have taken another leap in the legislation process and are one step closer to being released and are expected to come into force in 2026.
The Employment Rights Bill 2025 is important for all employers, HR representatives, and, of course, employees, and is one of the biggest overhauls of employment laws of this generation, creating a mass reconstruction of the current employee laws.
Currently, after a back and forth, the House of Commons is reviewing all the suggested changes from the House of Lords, before it goes back to them for further assessment.
So let’s go through some of the biggest changes to the Employment Rights Bill 2025
Statutory Sick Pay
Currently, in the Employment Rights Bill 2025, statutory sick pay (SSP) is £118.57 per week, paid by the employer for up to 28 weeks. To be eligible for SSP, a three-day waiting period is required (unless the employee has had sick pay in the past eight weeks), and the employee must earn a minimum of £125 per week.
In the amendments to the Employment Rights Bill 2025, SSP will become available from the first day of sickness, scrapping the three-day waiting period, and every employee will qualify. The payment routine will stay the same; however, for those earning below £125 per week, a payment will be calculated at 80% of their current rate, or the flat rate will be applied – whichever is lower.
Zero-Hour Contracts
In the current Employment Rights Bill 2025, a zero-hour contract means that the employee is not guaranteed any hours of work and is used to offer work only when it is available. This contract still allows those on it to be entitled to statutory employee rights; however, the contract was designed for two-way flexibility, and evidence suggests it has been exploitative towards employees.
The amendments to this section of the Employment Rights Bill 2025 have been designed to restrict the exploitative side of zero-hour contracts. It suggests that employers should offer employees on zero-hour contracts guaranteed hours of work that reflect the number of hours they have worked over a period of time. The preference for this period of time is 12 weeks; however, it has not been confirmed.
To qualify for this amendment, the employee should be on a zero-hour/sub-zero-hour arrangement or even a low-hours arrangement. The offer of guaranteed hours may be exempt if, within 12 weeks, the employee resigns, is fairly dismissed, or their temporary contract ends.
The amendments to the Employment Rights Bill 2025 include reforming the rights to reasonable notice to shift changes, notices, and cancellations.
Agency Work
An agency worker is someone who works through an agency, temporarily for a hirer – some models will work through an agency. Key aspects of an agency contract are that they must receive two information sheets showing how they are paid, how much they are paid, and how much they deduct, among other things.
In the reformed version of the Employment Rights Bill 2025, agency workers have the right to be offered guaranteed work the same way those on zero-hour contracts are, yet the end hirer must be responsible for this, and the agency can still include fees such as transfer fees. However, they are both jointly responsible for shift notices.
Start preparing for the amendments of the Employment Rights Bill 2025
These will be in place before you realise, so beginning to prepare for their implementation is reasonable. Whether as ad hoc HR or retained HR, by partnering with an HR Solutions company like us to help you navigate these new rights, we will ensure that you are prepared and ready for all these changes. To begin these preparations, don’t hesitate to contact us today.