Businesses across Staffordshire could see an increase in the number of employees taking up unpaid leave following changes outlined in the impending Employment Rights Bill.
Discussions over amendments to the Bill continued in the House of Lords this week with the legislation due to gain Royal Assent once both Houses have agreed a way forward.
Associate in the Knights Employment team, Lauren Green, says the changes shouldn’t impact businesses too greatly though.
“This area of law has been scrutinised for some time with many considering the current position insufficient in supporting employees at key moments in the lives – whether it’s a birth of a child or the loss of someone dear.
The key change for parents is the focus on “day-one rights” for paternity leave – removing the requirement for fathers to have a minimum of 26 weeks continuous employment before having the right to take two weeks off following the birth of their child.
In similar fashion, the eligibility criteria for unpaid parental leave will be relaxed with parents now set to be able to take up to 18 weeks’ unpaid leave to care for their child regardless of their length of service. These changes are set to come into force in April 2026.
These changes will naturally make taking these types of leave more accessible for a wider group of people and will therefore increase the uptake. I suspect the Government are trying to encourage individuals to exercise these rights and take the time required to care for their families which will in turn improve morale.
However, despite this being a step in the right direction, the reality of the situation is that parental leave is still unpaid, and paternity leave is limited to statutory paternity pay which has its own eligibility criteria. This does somewhat weaken the incentive for individuals to take these types of leave.
Changes to bereavement leave are also likely to emerge in 2027 with a proposal to introduce the right for employees to take one-week of unpaid bereavement leave when experiencing the loss of a loved one. We’re unsure how this will look in detail at this stage, but the aim is to give people a broader statutory right to time off when grieving, expanding on the current provisions that are in place relating to the loss of a child or a dependant.
This is a significant change in that individuals have been relying on the compassion of their employer to support them in a time of need – with many taking varying approaches. If this change is not made, then employees will continue to have little option but to use valuable holiday entitlement or sick leave to deal with a loss.
These changes are steps in the right direction, and we’ll more than likely see more people making use of these new rights but, in my view, the changes don’t currently go far enough for employers or employees to see a sizable impact.
As an additional note, it’s important to highlight a separate government review into all types of parental leave and pay announced in July this year. Although we’re unsure what this review may bring, I’m hopeful that it will include recommendations for extended leave and increased rates of pay.”
Unfortunately until the government bring in paid leave, employees will continue to take holiday or sick leave to cover things like bereavement. It’s all well and good giving access to leave but who these days can afford to take it unpaid? As you say all steps in the right direction but more needs to be done.