Employment Law Update

Following our Autumn update, there are a few matters of interest to bring to your attention.

1. Employment Rights Bill (“Bill”)

No employment update would be complete without a progress report on the Bill!

There is currently a game of ping pong being played between the House of Lords (“HL”) and the House of Commons (“HC”).

The HL amendments include a six-month qualifying period for unfair dismissal claims and the offering of the right for workers to opt out of the guaranteed hour contract provisions.  

These changes have been rejected by the HC, and the Bill is scheduled to return to the HL on 17^th November 2025.

2. The Bill –Consultations

The Government has launched consultations on four of the proposed areas of reform under the Bill.

1. Duty to inform

The Bill introduces a duty on employers to inform individuals of their right to join a trade union.

2. Right of access

The Bill proposes a statutory duty for employers to allow Unions access to the workplace for prescribed reasons.

Consultations under (1) and (2) will close on 18^th December 2025.

3. Leave for bereavement, including pregnancy loss

The Bill proposes a day 1 statutory right of unpaid bereavement leave.  The consultation will look at the relationships it will apply to and the practicalities of exercising the right.  

4. Enhanced dismissal protections for pregnant women and new mothers

This is likely to generate the most interest, given its potential wide range.  The Government is committing to making it unlawful to dismiss employees who are pregnant, on maternity leave or within six months of their return, except in limited circumstances.  The consultation explores what this protection might look like.

Consultations under (3) and (4) will close on 15^th January 2026.

Comment

It seems likely that the above matters will result in a delay to the phased implementation of the Bill.  We will keep you updated as to the progress and any impact.

3. ACAS Early Conciliation

Regulations have been published which increase the Early ACAS Conciliation period from 6 to 12 weeks.  The regulations are due to take effect on 1^st December 2025.

The reason for these regulations is to ease the pressure on ACAS given the current backlog in the system.

Comment

It is difficult to see how this will improve matters and in reality, this is papering over the problems.

For employers, it is likely that this extended period will mean that they will not be notified of claims until an even later stage.

4. Collective Redundancies

For any employers proposing 20 or more redundancies, there is an obligation to notify the Secretary of State on the HR1 form.  This form has recently been changed and updated and from 1^st December 2025, a new mandatory digital version of the form must be completed.

If you require further information in relation to any of these matters and how they might impact on your business, please contact:

Vicky Beattie on vicky.beattie@bbslaw.co.uk or 0161 302 8342

Robert Maddocks on robert.maddocks@bbslaw.co.uk or 0161 302 8364 

Paul Stedman on paul.stedman@bbslaw.co.uk or 0161 302 8380.

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