Government publishes new guidance for employers on implementing equality action plans

Under the Employment Rights Act 2025 (“ERA 2025”), large employers (i.e. those with 250 or more employees), are being encouraged to develop and publish equality action plans on a voluntary basis from 6 April 2026, and will be required to produce these on a mandatory basis from April 2027.

These equality action plans must show what steps the organisation is taking in relation to achieving equality in the workforce, specifically with regards to reducing gender pay gaps and supporting staff going through the menopause.

In March 2026 the Government published initial “overview guidance”, and in April 2026 it published more detailed step-by-step guidance, for employers on how to create equality action plans that comply with the ERA 2025 requirements.

Though it will still be some time before equality action plans become mandatory for large employers, organisations should be taking steps now to familiarise themselves with the requirements and begin to prepare for complying with them.

What are equality action plans?

The stated purpose of equality action plans is to support employers in taking effective action to improve workplace gender equality. More specifically, to:

• reduce the organisation’s gender pay gap, and
• support employees experiencing menopause.

Large employers are already under an obligation to report their gender pay gap in April each year. This encourages a measure of transparency, but does not, in and of itself, force employers to take action to address any inequalities identified (though, of course, any pay gap identified may give rise to issues of reputational damage and potential liability for equal pay claims from staff). In practice, broader reputational and legal risk considerations have meant that some employers have nonetheless taken proactive steps to improve their gender pay gaps. It is hoped that the introduction of equality action plans will further encourage employers to do so.

Turning to the question of support for employees experiencing menopause in the workplace; there is currently no specific legal obligation for employers to provide such support. However, it is possible for menopausal symptoms to amount to a disability (if they meet the definition contained in section 6 of the Equality Act 2010), and if so, an employer will be under a legal obligation to make reasonable adjustments. There may also be issues of indirect age and / or sex discrimination to be navigated and avoided here. It is hoped that the introduction of equality action plans will encourage employers to take proactive steps to support employees experiencing menopause in the workplace.

What does the Government guidance say?

The initial overview guidance from March 2026 included:

• basic guidance for employers on what an equality action plan should include (see here); and
• lists of recommended actions which employers can include (see here).

The more detailed step-by-step guidance from April 2026 is comprised of six resources, each of which provides information about a separate stage in the process of preparing an equality action plan (each of which is set out in more detail below). A copy of the detailed guidance can be found here.

Step 1: understand the relevant issues

The guidance advises employers to start with analysing their data, to enable them to:

• find the causes of their gender pay gap; and
• engage with employees to understand how they might be impacted by menopause at work.

The guidance explains:

• Why employers should use available evidence to help them understand the issues, and the best potential sources of this.
• How to diagnose a gender pay gap, by looking at every stage of the employee lifecycle.
• How to understand employees’ needs in relation to menopause, by talking to staff.
• The importance of engaging with staff on these issues, through early consultation and training.
• The importance of repeating analysis before, during, and after the creation of the action plan, in order to be able to compare results over time and make improvements where needed.

Step 2: decide on the actions that need to be taken

Once employers have an understanding of the issues within their organisation, they should decide on the specific actions which need to be taken to address them (18 examples are given in the March 2026 guidance).

A minimum of two actions must be chosen – one to address any gender pay gap and one to support employees experiencing menopause.

For each action, the employer must confirm if it is:

• New; i.e. something they are working on for the first time.
• In progress; i.e. something which builds on action(s) they are already taking.
• Embedded; i.e. something that is already part of their working practice.

At least two of the actions chosen must be “new” or “in progress”.

Employers can expand menopause-related actions to also benefit employees experiencing other health conditions related to menstrual health (such as adenomyosis, endometriosis, fibroids, and polycystic ovary syndrome); but this will be optional, rather than a requirement.

Step 3: write a supporting narrative

Each action plan must contain a narrative, which includes:

• Supporting text of up to 100 words for each action.
  • Where an action is new or in progress, there should be an explanation of why it was chosen and how its progress will be tracked.
  • Where an action is embedded, there should be a description of how it became an established part of working practice.
• A supporting narrative of up to 200 words for the overall action plan.

Employers are encouraged to make this information available on their website, and will be asked to provide a link to the relevant page when they submit their action plan (as part of step 4 below).

Step 4: submit the action plan

Before submitting the action plan, the employer will need to choose a “responsible person” to approve it.

Once this has been done, the action plan can be submitted by signing into the “Gender Pay Gap Service” website (which can be accessed here).

Step 5: track the action plan’s outcomes

Employers should periodically test whether progress is being achieved in relation to each action stated in the action plan. The guidance explains:

• Why progress should be monitored.
• How progress can be monitored.
• How to understand differences in outcomes across different groups.
• How to evaluate the effectiveness of the action plan.

Step 6: review and update the plan

Once action plans become mandatory for large employers (from April 2027), they will need to be reviewed and updated annually. The precise detail of what this will entail is yet to be confirmed. However, the guidance explains that (once submission has become mandatory):

• interim reviews will likely be required in the first and second years after submission; and
• a more detailed review will likely be required in the third year after submission.

There are also specific requirements around what steps need to be taken to update action plans on review; outlined in the guidance.

What should organisations be doing now?

The requirement to publish gender equality action plans will only apply to employers with 250 or more employees, and will only become mandatory from April 2027. The deadline for first mandatory equality action plans to be published, will be April 2028.

Those organisations which will be subject to these provisions, would be well advised to take steps now, to:

• read and understand the government guidance;
• audit what actions are already being taken, and what further actions could be taken;
• consider who in the organisation will need to be involved;
• review what HR policies and processes will need to be introduced and / or updated;
• decide how to engage with staff; and
• begin gathering data.

The initial, voluntary, submission of equality action plans is being encouraged from April 2026; and this might provide organisations with a helpful opportunity to get to grips with the new requirements before they become mandatory.

If your organisation needs further advice or training on any of the points raised above, please get in touch, and our team of experienced employment lawyers would be happy to help.

The material in this article is provided for guidance and general information only and is not intended to constitute legal or other professional advice upon which you should rely. In particular, the information should not be used as a substitute for a full and proper consultation with a suitably qualified professional. Please do contact the Bates Wells team if you require further advice.