While businesses might be distracted by other concerns in the current global climate – fuel volatility, material costs, and further pressures on margins – the tides of change remain in motion in UK legislature. Below is an overview from the government’s Employment Rights Bill and the elements coming into force this April.
Background
The Employment Rights Bill launched in 2024 and received royal assent in December 2025. It’s the biggest upgrade to workers’ rights in a generation and sets out over ‘30 key employment law reforms over 330 pages of complex legislation’.
•Eight reforms will launch in April 2026
• Nine more come into force in October 2026
• A final eleven changes follow throughout 2027
The eight changes arriving in April 2026
Speaking at an infrastructure conference this year, Emma McGrath of Citation Professional Services laid out the changes in detail, which cover:
• Statutory Sick Pay
• Fair Work Agency established
• Collective redundancy protective award – doubling the maximum period of the protective award
• ‘Day 1’ Paternity Leave and Unpaid Parental Leave
• Whistleblowing protections
• Simplifying trade union recognition process
• Electronic and workplace balloting
• Voluntary gender pay gap and menopause action plans
How will April’s Employment Rights Bill changes impact businesses?
Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) – eligibility widened, pay from day one
From 6 April:
• Lowpaid and parttime workers become eligible for SSP: The government is removing the Lower Earnings Limit (£125 per week), meaning employees who previously earned too little to qualify will now receive Statutory Sick Pay from April 2026.
• SSP becomes payable from the first day of sickness: The current three‑day waiting period is being abolished, so even very short absences will now trigger statutory sick pay.
• SSP will be capped at 80% of average weekly earnings or the flat statutory rate: Employers must pay either 80% of a worker’s average weekly earnings or the uprated flat rate (£123.25), whichever is lower, to avoid overpayment for lower‑earning staff.
• Transitional rules protect anyone already receiving SSP on 6 April 2026: Workers who are mid‑absence when the reforms begin won’t have their entitlement reduced, ensuring a smooth move to the new system. Ultimately, more short absences will attract SSP and more workers qualify. Budgeting and payroll configuration need attention, and absence procedures must be updated.
The launch of the Fair Work Agency (FWA)
A single enforcement body within the Department for Business and Trade will consolidate state enforcement of National Minimum Wage (NMW), SSP, and holiday pay. A financial penalty of up to 200% will be enforceable through court.
It can also bring tribunal claims for workers, offer legal assistance, and – once regulations are in place – charge employers for the costs of enforcement action.
Collective redundancy changes
New collective‑consultation rules kick in when a business plans to let 20 or more workers go within 90 days – whether through redundancies or fire‑and‑rehire. The law then requires the employer to formally consult staff first, explaining what’s changing, why it’s happening, sharing key information, and giving workers time to respond before any decisions are made.
Large businesses spread across multiple sites and depots are more likely to hit the 20‑person threshold without realising it, especially during seasonal downturns or when reshaping project teams. If consultation is skipped or handled poorly, tribunals can award a protective award of up to 180 days’ full pay per affected worker, making early planning essential.
‘Dayone’ family leave changes
From 6 April 2026, Paternity Leave and Unpaid Parental Leave become day‑one rights, meaning employees no longer need any minimum length of service before taking them. Workers have been able to give notice for day‑one Paternity Leave since 18 February 2026 under the Government’s implementation plan.
For employers, this means removing all service‑length requirements from policies, induction materials, and contracts, and preparing managers to handle day‑one requests.
Whistleblowing changes
Disclosures about sexual harassment will now be explicitly protected under UK whistleblowing law, so workers raising concerns ‘are protected from detriment, adverse treatment, and unfair dismissal on the basis that they have made such a disclosure. Crucially, the protection applies regardless of when the incident took place, covering past, present, or anticipated harassment.
‘Until now, an employee would have to assert that their sexual harassment disclosure fell under one of the existing whistleblowing categories, such as a criminal offence or danger to health and safety, in order to assert that they had raised a protected disclosure.’
Simplifying trade union recognition process and adjustments to balloting
Most of the Trade Union Act 2016 has been repealed, making industrial‑action processes faster and less complex.
• Industrial action will now be easier to organise: Notice periods drop to 10 days, ballot mandates last 12 months, and unions no longer need to provide as much information in action notices.
• Fewer administrative obligations on unions: No requirement for picket supervisors or for reimbursing employers for check‑off administration.
• Stronger protection for workers: Employees are protected from unfair dismissal regardless of strike length, removing the old 12‑week limit.
•Recognition rules change in April 2026: Recognition ballots move to a simple majority, and barriers preventing independent unions from applying are removed. Further reforms are expected later in the year.
Voluntary action plans on gender pay gap and menopause
From April 2026, employers with 250+ staff can publish a voluntary gender‑equality action plan alongside their gender pay gap data, with publication becoming mandatory in spring 2027, subject to secondary legislation.
Plans must show concrete steps the organisation is taking to reduce its gender pay gap and support employees experiencing menopause, using recommended, evidence‑based actions developed through government research.
Employers must pick at least one action in each area, but are encouraged to go further and create a wider programme of meaningful cultural and operational change. More information is available on the government website.
Re-flow provide field management software to support the specific, complicated workflows found across UK infrastructure, from highways and civils, to groundworks and commercial landscaping. For more information on how Re-flow help infrastructure businesses run compliant, well-coordinated field operations, click HERE.
(Pictures: Re-flow)
