April 2026 – Employment Law Changes

It is not secret that employment law is set undergoing significant reform over the next year or so, driven by the Employment Rights Act 2025 (and most of which are detailed here). Employers will have to take a proactive approach to these changes, some of which will be coming into force next month:

Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) from the first day of sickness

The requirement to pay SSP will kick in from the first day of sickness absence, rather than after three days. Employers should review (and, if necessary, update) any absence management policies and payroll processes to reflect this change and ensure that managers are aware to avoid confusion or incorrect payments.

It is also important to know that the lower earnings limit will be removed (currently £125 per week in 2025/2026), meaning that more employees will be eligible for SSP. This, along with the additional days of pay, may result in higher short-term absence costs, which should be factored into your financial planning.

Paternity leave and unpaid parental leave available from “day one”

Good news for families: employees will no longer have to wait to take paternity leave and unpaid parental leave, as it will be available to them from the start of their employment (rather than after the qualifying service requirements of 26 weeks and 12 months respectively). Employers should be ready for the increase in uptake of parental leave. Policies should be updated and managers be made aware so they can handle any requests appropriately. There could be potential extra costs because of this expanded eligibility, as well as more thought to be put into the staff coverage due to extra absences.

Paternity leave can be taken after shared parental leave

For babies born after 6 April 2026 (or expected then but born early), employees will be able to take paternity leave after a period of shared parental leave. Again, policies should be updated and managers made aware so they can handle any requests appropriately.

Increased penalties for failing to collectively consult 

If an organisation is considering making twenty or more employees redundant, it should be aware that the maximum protective award for failure to consult during collective redundancies will double from 90 days’ pay to 180 days’ pay for each affected employee. It is now even more important to comply with the requirements of collective consultation, as non-compliance could become significantly more costly.

The requirements of the Fair Work Agency

The Fair Work Agency, to be established on 7 April, will oversee rights including holiday pay, statutory sick pay and minimum wage compliance. It is still early days to see how this will work in practice, so it is worth keeping an eye on the government’s guidance (and for future updates from us).

There is no escaping it – if you are an employer and you have not already started preparing for these (and future changes) now is the time to review your policies, update your payroll systems, and make managers aware of the expanded employee rights.

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