Employment Rights Bill | major changes on Government plans

On 27 November the House of Commons agreed that the ERB would contain a six-month qualifying period for unfair dismissal rights, a significant concession by Government. A six-month qualifying period is likely to be easier to administer for employers with day-one unfair dismissal rights no longer being balanced with probationary periods.

Rather than using existing powers in the Employment Rights Act 1996 to vary the qualifying period, the Government intends to legislate through the Employment Rights Bill itself. This means the six-month rule will be embedded in primary legislation and presumably means Government is future-proofing the change.



Read about this and more in our weekly newsletter for Wednesday 3 December 2025