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Employment Law Changes 2024: Live Updates
July 15, 2024
| Expected Change | Latest Update | Key Dates |
| Day One Unfair Dismissal Rights | Being taken forward in Employment Rights Bill, subject to an “initial period” of 9 months during which it’s expected that a short process can be followed in order to fairly dismiss employees for conduct or capability – but not redundancy. | Likely to take effect in autumn 2026. |
| Changing Zero-Hour Contracts/Right to Minimum Working Hours | Being taken forward in Employment Rights Bill, giving zero hours and low hours workers the right to be offered guaranteed hours after the first 12 weeks if they have worked more than the minimum hours set out in their contract during that time (subject to certain exceptions). Also now being taken forward in relation to agency workers too, with the responsibility for making the offer to be on the hirer business. | Further consultation taking place in 2025. |
| Removal of Employee / Worker Distinction | Not being taken forward in Employment Rights Bill and being taken to further consultation instead. | Consultation expected in late 2025 or early 2026. |
| Employment Tribunal Claims | Being taken forward in Employment Rights Bill – time limit for bringing all types of Employment Tribunal claims (including unfair dismissal) from 3 months to 6 months. | Not yet known |
| The Right to Disconnect | It’s believed that plans for this have been dropped and will no longer be taken forward. | None |
| Duty to Prevent Sexual Harassment | Brought into force on 26 October 2024, but likely to be further strengthened by Labour Government in due course including stronger duty to safeguard employees from harassment (not just sexual harassment) by third parties and to take “all” reasonable steps to prevent harassment. | Further protections regarding sexual and third party harassment likely to take effect in autumn 2025. |
| Ending Fire and Re-Hire | Significant changes proposed, making it automatically unfair to dismiss an employee for not agreeing to a change to their terms of employment (other than in cases of severe financial difficulty). Government is continuing to consult on this and on the accompanying Code of Practice. | Likely to be in 2026. |
| Extending protection from dismissal for pregnant employees and new parents | Being taken forward in Employment Rights Bill so protections for employees who are pregnant, on maternity, adoption or shared parental leave or within 6 months of returning to work will have protection from dismissal (not just redundancy) except in specific circumstances. | Draft regulations expected in 2025. |
| Collective Redundancy Consultations | Rules on collective consultation to be tightened so that employers are required to consult through representatives in more cases, and compensation for failing to do so increased to up to 180 days’ pay per employee. | Consulting to take place in late 2025; regulations expected in 2026. |
| Requirement to Keep Records of Holiday Pay | New obligation to be imposed under the Employment Rights Bill requiring employers to keep records of their compliance with holiday entitlement and pay rules for 6 years; failing to comply will be a criminal offence. | Could come into force as soon as October 2025. |
| Creation of Fair Work Agency | New body to be established which will have the power to bring Employment Tribunal claims on behalf of workers and will have enforcement powers over minimum wage, agency rules, and holiday pay, including the right to enter businesses and inspect records. | Likely to be longer-term change (not expected in 2025) as will take some time for agency to be set up and powers to be put in place. |
| Protection of public sector workers in outsourcing TUPEs | Protections to be brought in to give more protection to public sector workers who TUPE to a private sector employer in an outsourcing situation, and to give existing workers of the private sector employer rights to be treated no less favourably than the public sector workers who TUPE in. | Code of Practice, Call for Evidence and draft regulations expected later in 2025. |
| Making flexible working (or a strengthened right to request it) “the default” | Right to request flexible working to be strengthened so that employers can only refuse a request if it’s “reasonable” to do so, and has one of the 8 statutory business reasons. | Draft regulations expected in 2025 and may come into force as soon as October 2025. |
| Rights for shift workers | Employment Rights Bill introduces right for shift workers (including zero hours or minimum hours workers and those without a set working pattern) to be given reasonable notice of shifts and compensation if shifts are changed or cancelled at short notice. | Consultation taking place later in 2025 – change not expected until 2026. |
| Pay |
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NLW to increase to £12.21 for over-20s in April 2025. Further changes to be phased in over next 3 years to bring rate for 18–20-year-olds in line with 21 and overs. |
| Statutory right to equal pay for ethnic minority employees and those with disabilities | Confirmed will be brought to Parliament in draft Equality (Race and Disability) Bill – now going out to consultation. | Draft bill expected in next 12 months. |
| Disability/Ethnicity Pay Gap Reporting | Confirmed will be brought to Parliament in draft Equality (Race and Disability) Bill – now going out to consultation. | Draft bill expected in next 12 months. |
| Trade Union Rights | Being taken forward in Employment Rights Bill – proposed that trade union officials will have more rights to access workplaces for recruitment and collective bargaining purposes, rules on statutory union recognition will be loosened, and employers will be required to inform workers of their right to join a union in their contract of employment/statement of terms on day 1 of their employment. | Consultations happening in 2025 and draft regulations expected in next 12 months. |
| Right to Bereavement Leave | Current right to statutory parental bereavement leave to be extended to the loss of certain close family members or dependants – expected to be a day 1 right and to give entitlement to 1 week’s (unpaid leave) for most losses, along with 2 weeks’ (paid – at statutory rate) leave for loss of a child. | Likely to be in 2026. |
| Right to Bereavement Leave for Pregnancy Loss | Government has now indicated this will be added to the Employment Rights Bill to give statutory right to leave for employees who suffer pregnancy loss during the first 24 weeks of pregnancy (following which the right to maternity leave begins). | Amendments to be added to the Bill shortly while it is being considered in House of Lords, with regulations expected in 2025. |
| Right to Paternity Leave from Day 1 | Employment Rights Bill would remove the current requirement for 26 weeks’ service before an employee is eligible for statutory paternity leave. | Draft regulations expected in 2025 and may come into force as soon as October 2025. |
| Parental Leave from Day 1 | Parental leave (unpaid) to be a statutory right from day 1 of employment. Government to also conduct a wider review of the parental leave system and consider introducing paid carers’ leave. | Right to day 1 parental leave may come into force as soon as October 2025; wider review not expected until late 2025/early 2026. |
| Collective Grievances | No update yet | Not yet known |
| Changes to Equality action plans | Proposal for employers to include an explanation in their equality action plans on how they are supporting employees with menopause, menstrual problems or menstrual disorders. | Not yet known. |
Our employment lawyers can offer advice and direction for any employers who are concerned about what they should be doing next. Contact us on 029 2082 9100 or via our Contact Us form for a free initial chat to see how we can help you.
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