The government has quietly pushed back the introduction of its flagship fire and rehire restrictions, giving employers several more months to prepare for one of the most contentious reforms in the Employment Rights Act 2025.
Under a revised implementation timeline published on Tuesday by the Department for Business and Trade, protections aimed at preventing employers from dismissing staff in order to re-engage them on less favourable terms will now take effect in January 2027, rather than in late 2026 as previously indicated.
The update forms part of a wider schedule setting out when the many provisions of the Employment Rights Act will come into force over the next two years. Legal experts say the delay is likely to reflect the need for further consultation on how the new restrictions will operate in practice.
Liz Stevens, a support lawyer in the employment team at law firm Birketts LLP, told HRreview that the later start date appeared to be linked to unfinished policy work.
“It is unclear why the government appears to have pushed back the date for the fire and rehire ban under the Employment Rights Act 2025 to take effect,” she said.
“But according to its original roadmap, published in July 2025, a consultation on these provisions was expected in autumn 2025, which failed to materialise. So it appears likely the delay is to allow this consultation process to be completed.”
Stevens said the consultation was expected to focus on detailed regulations underpinning the new law.
“This will probably cover proposed regulations to clarify or extend the definition of a restricted variation to employees’ contracts that will be deemed unlawful under the fire and rehire provisions,” she said.
Extra time for employers
The change means organisations considering difficult alterations to contracts will have more time to manage the process under existing rules.
Stevens said the revised timetable would provide a limited period of breathing space.
“It means that employers seeking to make potentially contentious changes to terms and conditions, and who may not succeed in securing their employees’ voluntary agreement to these changes, will have a few extra months to follow a lawful dismissal and re-engagement process before these significant changes take effect,” she said.
But she warned that the existing legal framework still required careful handling.
“Employers should still ensure they follow the current statutory Code of Practice on dismissal and re-engagement to avoid a potential uplift of 25 percent on any compensation awarded to an employee following a successful claim,” she added.
Wider programme of reforms
The delay to the fire and rehire measures forms part of a complex programme of changes being rolled out through 2026 and 2027.
In its statement, the Department for Business and Trade said the reforms would be delivered in phases so that employers and workers had time to plan.
The government said it continued to undertake extensive engagement on implementation to ensure the changes worked for businesses of all sizes.
Several elements of the Act have already come into force. At Royal Assent in December 2025, the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act 2023 was repealed.
Further measures will take effect on 18 February 2026, including the repeal of most of the Trade Union Act 2016, simplification of industrial action notice rules, and new protections against dismissal for taking industrial action.
A significant package of reforms is scheduled for 6 April 2026. These include the removal of the waiting period and lower earnings limit for Statutory Sick Pay, stronger whistleblowing protections in cases of sexual harassment, and the doubling of the maximum protective award in collective redundancy cases.
April will also see the introduction of day-one rights to paternity leave and unpaid parental leave, as well as voluntary action plans on gender equality and menopause support.
October changes to harassment duties
Another major milestone will arrive in October 2026, when new duties on preventing sexual harassment take effect.
From that point, employers will be required to take all reasonable steps to prevent harassment of employees, including by third parties such as customers or clients.
October will also bring new rights for trade unions, including stronger access to workplaces and new obligations on employers to inform staff of their right to join a union.
Unfair dismissal reforms in 2027
The largest single change for HR departments is scheduled for January 2027.
From then on, the qualifying period for unfair dismissal claims will fall from two years to six months, and the cap on unfair dismissal compensation will be removed.
The fire and rehire restrictions will now commence at the same time, rather than earlier in 2026 as many employers had expected.
Although some measures have been postponed, advisers say the overall direction of travel remains clear.
The government has made repeated commitments to strengthen employee protections and increase enforcement powers, including the creation of a new Fair Work Agency in April this year.
With overlapping changes arriving across absence management, trade union rights, dismissal law and harassment duties, organisations are being urged to begin planning well ahead of formal start dates.
The Department for Business and Trade said it would continue to review timings as consultations progressed and further details were developed.
What employers should watch
The revised timetable means HR attention must remain on immediate changes in spring and autumn 2026, while also preparing for the more far-reaching reforms due in 2027.
Policies on dismissal procedures, contractual flexibility, harassment prevention and trade union engagement are likely to require review during the coming months.
The government’s full timeline update sets out expected start dates for more than 20 separate measures under the Employment Rights Act and the wider Plan to Make Work Pay programme.
