Employers who dismiss and re-engage staff on worse terms — a practice known as "fire and rehire" —...
Employment Rights Act 2025: Changes bring day-one rights
Statutory sick pay (SSP) is now payable from the first day of sickness absence
Sweeping changes under the Employment Rights Act 2025 took effect across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland on 6 April 2026, reshaping sick pay, family leave and redundancy risk for employers nationwide, according to multiple legal and government sources.
Statutory sick pay (SSP) is now payable from the first day of sickness absence, removing the previous three-day waiting period. The lower earnings limit has also been scrapped, meaning workers no longer need to earn a minimum weekly amount to qualify. The government estimates the change will result in 1.3 million additional employees becoming eligible for SSP. SSP is paid at either the flat statutory rate — £123.25 a week from 6 April 2026 — or 80% of average weekly earnings, whichever is lower.
Statutory paternity leave and unpaid parental leave have also become day-one rights, removing service requirements that previously required 26 weeks' and one year's employment respectively.
Separately, the maximum protective award for failures in collective redundancy consultation has doubled from 90 to 180 days' pay per affected employee, effective for dismissals from 6 April 2026 onward. The award applies where employers propose 20 or more redundancies at one establishment within 90 days and fail to properly consult employee representatives.
From the same date, disclosures about sexual harassment now qualify as protected whistleblowing disclosures, giving workers protection from detriment and unfair dismissal when raising such concerns, regardless of length of service.
The Fair Work Agency, a new single enforcement body, came into existence on 7 April 2026, though further regulations are still required before its full enforcement powers take effect.
Further reforms are scheduled through October 2026 and into 2027, including a strengthened duty to prevent sexual harassment and changes to the collective consultation threshold for multi-site employers.
