On 3 February 2026, the Government published an updated implementation timetable for the Employment Rights Act 2025 (“ERA 2025”), revising its original roadmap which was published in July 2025 and confirmed again in December 2025. (See our articles on this here and here.)
Key changes to the implementation timetable include:
- New guidance on menopause will take effect on 6 April 2026.
- Electronic and workplace balloting has been pushed back, from April 2026 to August 2026 (for statutory trade union ballots) and to sometime in 2027 (for recognition and derecognition ballots).
- Fire and rehire restrictions have been delayed from October 2026, and will now take effect in January 2027.
- A consultation on these reforms has also been started. It asks for views on which contractual changes to expenses, benefits, payments in kind, and shift patterns, should constitute “restricted variations”, for the purposes of the new right not to be automatically unfairly dismissed for failing to agree to a restricted variation. A link to the consultation, which closes on 1 April 2026, can be found here.
- The power to make regulations specifying the steps that are to be regarded as “reasonable”, when determining whether an employer has taken all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace, has been brought forward from 2027 to October 2026.
The new timetable gives no information about when the restrictions on confidentiality provisions in non-disclosure agreements will take effect and, unlike the July 2025 roadmap, no timeline for future consultations is provided. Although the updated timetable does state that the Government will keep timings under review as it consults and develops policy detail. A link to the Government’s revised timetable can be found here.
We have put together an updated overview of the ERA 2025 implementation timeline in full, along with an exploration of what it means for employers, in our article here.
If you’d like to discuss any of the issues outlined in this article, 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 or information about management training which we offer.