The Employment Rights Bill: Still not here yet

The Employment Rights Bill (the Bill) represents the biggest change to employment law in decades and will impact employers of all sizes and all sectors. 

We’ve been keeping you up to date on the progress of the Bill, and in the latest development the House of Lords have held firm on their insistence of a number of key amendments, including:

• Unfair dismissal qualifying period: Rather than becoming a day-one right as originally proposed, the Lords continue to insist on a six-month qualifying period.
• Guaranteed hours offer: As currently drafted, employers are under a duty to proactively offer a guaranteed hours contract to zero/low hours workers. However, the Lords continue to press for an amendment which would allow workers to opt-out of receiving a guaranteed hours offer and also to make provision for seasonal work.
• Trade union ballot thresholds: The Lords remain of the view that a 50% turnout requirement for industrial action ballots should be retained.
• Trade union political funds: The Lords continue to object to the proposal that union members be automatically opted in to a Trade Union’s political fund.

Next steps

The Bill will have to return once more to the House of Commons. Only when both Houses are in agreement will the Bill receive Royal Assent. The effect of Royal Assent is that it confirms the final version of the Bill and sets a specified date on which it will become law. 

It remains to be seen how much longer the Bill will have to pass back and forth between both Houses until a final agreement can be reached. Therefore, it’s possible Royal Assent may not happen before both Houses recess for Christmas on 18 December. As previously set out in our article, relatively few of the Bills’ provisions will come into force immediately.

The delay is having an impact on the government’s consultation timetable which has already slipped.

Employers should continue to stay informed and think about which of their policies and practices may be impacted by the Bill and what changes may be needed. 

We’ll continue to keep a close eye on the Bill and provide further updates in due course. In the meantime, if you’d like to join our expert employment lawyers for essential insight into what's changing, when it takes effect, and the practical steps you can take now to prepare your business with confidence, please sign up to our free webinar on 9 December 2025.