ERA changes: timeline for updating contracts and policies

The Employment Rights Act 2025 is not a single “go‑live” event. It is a rolling programme of reform, with changes coming into force in stages through 2026 and beyond. For employers, there is a practical challenge not just in understanding what is changing, but in sequencing the necessary updates to contracts, policies and processes.  We've suggested a timeline below, to ensure that employers can get ahead of the changes without overwhelming HR teams. 

April 2026

The first wave of changes took effect in April 2026, most notably the reforms to statutory sick pay.  If they haven't done so already, employers should review and update sickness absence policies, any contractual references to SSP waiting days or eligibility thresholds, as these are now obsolete and ensure that payroll processes have been updated.  Employers should also check how any contractual sick pay terms interact with the SSP changes - in some cases it may be advisable to update template contracts to clarify when contractual sick pay starts. 

Family leave policies will need to be updated to reflect that paternity and parental leave are now “day 1” rights, and to reflect the new right to bereaved partners' paternity leave.  

Whistleblowing policies should also be updated to make it clear that disclosures about sexual harassment are covered, to reflect this change which came into force in April 2026.  Further changes to harassment law come into force in October 2026, requiring employers to take all reasonable steps to prevent harassment of staff and also not to permit harassment of staff by third parties. However, full details of what steps will be regarded as reasonable will not be available until 2027.  We suggest that employers update their whistleblowing and anti-harassment policies now, as well as their contracts with third party suppliers, ahead of October 2026, but with a view to updating them further when the additional details are published in 2027. 

May/June 2026

The qualifying period for unfair dismissal is reducing to 6 months from January 2027, any new joiners hired from July 2026 onwards will potentially be able to claim unfair dismissal if dismissed. That means that employers should review their probation periods and employment contracts now, so that they can update templates for prospective hires.  Employers will need to look at how KPIs are set and monitored for new employees, as well as how probation periods are handled in practice -  when reviews take place, who takes decisions about extension of probation and on what grounds, how this is communicated to the employee, and so on.  These systems are likely to need updating to ensure that performance and conduct of new joiners are monitored and managed so as to reduce the risk of unfair dismissal claims. 

From January 2027, the ability of employers to effect contractual changes through fire and rehire will be significantly curtailed under the “restricted variation” regime.   Even under the existing law this can be a legally risky exercise, with the possibility of triggering requirements to consult collectively (and, with the penalty for not consulting collectively doubled from April 2026, there are good reasons to get this right).   Employers should consider whether there are any contractual terms which require changes which won't be permitted under the new regime and, if so, consider making these changes now.  As such changes may require both collective and individual consultation, which significantly extends the timelines, we recommend looking at this sooner rather than later so that, if necessary, any dismissals may be effected well in advance of the January changes. 

July/August 2026

From October 2026, employers will be under a duty to inform employees and workers of their right to join a trade union - for new joiners, this should accompany their statement of terms and conditions, so employers will need to update template contracts ahead of October to refer to this right. 

Another key change slated for “no earlier” than October 2026 is the extension of Employment Tribunal time limits.   Although this is unlikely to require contractual or policy changes, employers will need to review document retention policies to ensure that key documentation is not inadvertently lost or destroyed where there is a lengthy period between an employee's departure and notification of a claim. 

September 2026 onwards - preparing for the future

A number of changes planned for 2027 do not currently have a defined implementation date.   These include: 

• changes to flexible working
• new collective redundancy thresholds for multi-site redundancies
• right to be offered guaranteed hours
• stronger protection against dismissal for pregnant women and new mothers
• bereavement leave
• changes to the enforceability of NDAs in cases involving allegations of discrimination and harassment.

In some cases, we are still waiting for key details of the proposed changes, or waiting to see if proposals change substantially during the consultation process.  At present, therefore, employers should hold fire on updating their policies and contracts to reflect these changes, but should keep up with announcements about these aspects of the reforms. 

The question is no longer whether change is coming but rather how employers can best navigate a phased but substantial shift in employment rights. Getting ahead of the timetable, rather than scrambling to meet it, will be far cheaper in the long run.