Employment Rights Bill: latest government amendments signal further change
On 7 July 2025, the government tabled further amendments to the Employment Rights Bill ahead of its House of Lords Report Stage on 14 July. These proposed changes would tighten several aspects of the Bill and, if passed, could have important implications for employers.
Headline developments include a proposed ban on non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) that prevent workers from speaking up about harassment or discrimination. This would apply to conduct by the employer or a colleague and would not be limited to sexual harassment. Confidentiality clauses requested by the worker may still be permitted, though further clarification is expected. If enacted, employers would need to review and update their settlement agreement templates to ensure compliance.
The government also proposes to strengthen the restrictions on dismissal and re-engagement. It would become automatically unfair to dismiss an employee for refusing to accept a change to core contractual terms, such as pay, hours or holidays. Dismissing an employee and replacing them with a non-employee doing substantially the same work would also be automatically unfair, unless there is a genuine redundancy situation.
Other amendments would extend bereavement leave to cover pregnancy loss before 24 weeks (with the detail to be set out in secondary legislation), and clarify that agency workers who accept guaranteed hours offers must be treated as direct employees of the hirer. Additional protections are also proposed for public sector workers, including safeguards for existing contractual terms and greater parliamentary oversight of relevant codes and guidance.
These amendments are due to be debated in the House of Lords. Given the government’s majority, it is assumed they are likely to pass.
What this means for employers
While the amendments are still subject to debate, they indicate the likely direction of travel. Employers should continue to monitor the progress of the Bill and consider the potential implications for contracts, policies and working practices in anticipation of future change.
To stay updated, save our Employment Rights Bill tracker to keep up with the latest developments.
For more information or advice, please contact Alice Mennell in our Employment team.