Employers must be ready for the new “day one” rights, which will take effect on April 6, 2026.
Employers should be aware of the new “day one” rights that employees will have starting on April 6, 2026, even though many of the major changes brought about by the Employment Rights Act 2025 won’t take effect until 2027.
Sick pay required by law (SSP)
Currently, SSP eligibility begins on the fourth day of illness; however, this three-day waiting period will be eliminated:
- All employees will be eligible for SSP after the lower earnings threshold—currently £125 per week—is eliminated.
- Employees who take time off due to illness will be paid 80% of their average weekly wages or the lower of the SSP rate starting on April 6, 2026.
Employers may have to deal with an increase in sick leave abuse cases, which will require careful handling.
Return-to-work interviews and asking employees to check in frequently while on sick leave are two strategies to lessen abuse.
Regular parental leave and paternity leave
Both regular parental leave and paternity leave will become “day one” rights. Currently, paternity leave is only available after 26 weeks of employment; this qualifying requirement will not change with regard to paternity pay.
Currently, unpaid regular parental leave is only accessible following a year of employment.
An employee will no longer be barred from taking paternity leave after taking shared parental leave.
Paternity leave for bereaved partners
This is a “day one” right that was introduced by separate legislation and will become a new statutory entitlement on April 6, 2026. Statutory pay requirements do not exist. Employees who lose a child’s mother within the first year of the child’s life are eligible to take the new leave. Depending on when a bereavement occurs, a maximum of 52 weeks of leave may be taken. If a child is adopted and the primary adopter passes away, the same leave is available.
See government factsheets covering SSP and paternity and parental leave changes or contact our team of accountants in Barnsley for more information.