In April, the Employment Rights Act is set to bring significant changes for employers. To help our People South Action Group champions prepare, we hosted a panel of employment law specialists to provide an overview of what to expect and practical guidance for managing teams, followed by a Q&A session. Our panellists included Paul Burton (View HR), Claire Merritt (Paris Smith), and Darren Tibble (Dutton Gregory).
Paul Burton provided an overview of key legislative changes affecting employment practices that will impact employers’ day-to-day operations. This included changes to statutory sick pay, updates to employment tribunal time limits, unfair dismissal reforms, and proposed changes to zero-hour and low-hour contracts. He highlighted practical steps for employers, such as updating contracts and policies, reviewing payroll systems, and ensuring managers are aware of their new obligations.
Claire Merritt covered reforms regarding harassment, family rights, and flexible working, aimed at strengthening protections for employees. This included whistleblowing and sexual harassment, day-one rights for paternity and parental leave, bereaved partner leave, flexible working reforms, and the strengthened duty to prevent harassment, including liability for third-party harassment. She also touched on forthcoming measures, such as restrictions on NDAs in harassment cases and protections for employees returning from family leave.
Darren Tibble explored broader workplace reforms, including restrictions on fire-and-rehire practices, changes to collective redundancy consultation, and reforms affecting trade union rights. He also highlighted the launch of the Fair Work Agency, a new enforcement body responsible for ensuring compliance with minimum wage, statutory sick pay, holiday pay, and agency worker protections. Additionally, Darren noted upcoming obligations for organisations to publish menopause and gender pay gap action plans.
