Tag: protecting workers’ rights

New study reveals a third of employers are likely to make redundancies by January 2027

A new survey from Acas has found that a third of employers (33%) are likely to make staff redundancies by January 2027.

Acas commissioned YouGov to ask British businesses about their redundancy plans between February 2026 and January 2027.

The poll revealed that 46% of large businesses are likely to make redundancies and one in five (21%) small and medium sized (SME) businesses said that were likely to do so over the same period.

The Government has recently consulted on new law changes outlined in the Employment Rights Act 2025 for employers that want to make collective redundancies across their organisation. Acas has published its response to the consultation.

Acas Director of Dispute Resolution, Kevin Rowan, said: “The results of our poll reveal that a third of businesses are considering redundancies by the start of next year.

“Organisations should look at all possible alternatives to redundancies first, but if employers conclude they have no choice, then they have legal requirements they must follow. This means they must consult with staff early to seek their views, or risk being subject to a costly legal process.

“In 2027, the Government’s Employment Rights Act will introduce new consultation requirements if redundancies are proposed across multiple sites. Acas recommends that the Government ensures employers and trade unions understand the value of collective consultation and have the skills to work well together.”

If an employer finds there are no other choices than to make redundancies, then there are strict rules on consulting staff that they must follow.

An employer must discuss any planned changes and consult with each employee who could be affected. By law, employers who wish to make 20 or more staff redundant in a 90-day period must also consult a recognised trade union or elected employee representatives about the proposed changes.

If an employer does not meet consultation requirements, employees can take their employer to an employment tribunal. If successful, the employer may have to pay up to 180 days’ full pay for each affected employee.

An employee can also make a claim of unfair dismissal to an employment tribunal on the grounds that they were not consulted, or the consultation was not meaningful.

At the moment, collective redundancy rules only apply if the redundancies are proposed at one workplace. The Employment Rights Act 2025 introduces a law change that means the rules will count redundancies across an employer’s entire organisation.

An organisation that plans to make a certain number of redundancies across multiple sites or workplaces will have to follow new law changes due to take effect in 2027. The Government ran a consultation to seek views on the changes and what the redundancy threshold number should be that sparks a collective redundancy process for an employer that has multiple sites.

Acas advice is that employers should consider all possible options before considering redundancies as other solutions to their situation could be found through consultation with their staff, employee representatives and unions.

In response to the Government’s consultation, Acas recommended that:

  • the Government make sure that employers, trade unions and staff representatives understand the value of collective consultation and have the skills to work well together; and
  • the Government should also pick a threshold for consultation that is easy to understand and does not require complex systems to calculate, as this would help avoid procedural disputes and reduce administrative burdens.

For Acas’s full response to the Government’s consultation, please see: 

https://www.acas.org.uk/public-consultation-responses

Acas’s advice for staff and employers about redundancies is available at: 

www.acas.org.uk/redundancy

Westminster Government: How we’re ‘fixing the foundations’

We want to create wealth everywhere, but first we must fix the foundations of our country.

In the first few weeks of this Government, an audit found a £22 billion black hole in the public finances. It means we’ve had to take tough decisions, like means-testing the Winter Fuel Payment. Our Budget in October will be difficult.

But we have already taken action to improve the lives of working people in every corner of the country, from unlocking planning decisions to help build 1.5 million new homes to setting up Great British Energy, to create good jobs and provide clean energy to cut people’s bills in the long term.

Here are some of the things we are doing to fix the foundations of this country.

Setting up a new National Wealth Fund 

Growth is the number one priority of this government. That’s why we set up the National Wealth Fund. 

It is a publicly owned investment fund that will help attract investment into our country, stabilise our economy and create wealth for future generations.  

It will help unlock private investment into the UK by directly investing in new and growing industries, and help create thousands of jobs in clean energy industries.  

Accelerating housing planning 

We’re overhauling our housing system to meet the needs of working people and put communities first.  

Our plan will include introducing mandatory planning targets to aim to deliver on our ambition to build 1.5 million new homes over the next five years.  

The new targets will boost housebuilding in areas most in need, to help more people buy their own homes, and help drive growth – making everyone in the country better off. 

Putting passengers first  We’ll put our rail system back on track with new laws to deliver for passengers.  

They will improve the railways by reforming rail franchising, establishing Great British Railways and bringing train operators into public ownership. 

Protecting taxpayer money 

We’ll introduce legislation that makes sure nobody can play fast and loose with public finances. 

A new Bill will strengthen the role of the Office of Budget Responsibility, meaning significant fiscal announcements must be properly scrutinised and that taxpayers’ money is respected. 

Protecting workers’ rights  

We’ll improve workers’ rights with new legislation – a significant step towards delivering this Government’s plan to make work pay. 

We will ban exploitative zero-hours contracts, end fire and rehire, and introduce basic employment rights from day one.  

And we’re changing the way the Minimum Wage is set so it keeps in line with the cost of living, in a move to put more money in working people’s pockets. 

Launching GB Energy  

Producing clean energy and creating good jobs will be our focus for the rest of the year. Great British Energy, a publicly owned, clean-energy company, will own, manage and operate clean power projects, such as wind farms, across the country.

 Great British Energy will be headquartered in Scotland and paid for by a windfall tax on oil and gas giants. It will invest clean power projects across the United Kingdom, such as wind farms, which are the cheapest forms of electricity generation to build and operate.  

This will help make our country energy independent, tackle climate change and save families money. And investing in clean domestic power will create jobs and build supply chains in every corner of the UK.