Much of the discussion surrounding the Employment Rights Act 2025 has focused on the practical implications for employers. Organisations are reviewing policies, updating procedures and preparing for changes that will reshape how people are managed.
Behind these operational changes, however, sits a more fundamental question; what assumptions does the legislation make about the relationship between employers and employees?
For Sophie Haylock, Founder and Director of Early Years HR, this question sits at the heart of the debate.
Rather than viewing the legislation simply as a collection of new employment rights, Sophie believes it reflects a wider shift in how organisations are expected to manage their people and the level of trust that exists between employers, employees and regulators.
A mirror before it becomes anything else
When asked whether the Employment Rights Act 2025 is more likely to reveal workplace culture or force organisations to change it, Sophie’s answer is clear.
“From speaking to my clients and my wider networking groups, I think that the ERA 2025 acts far more like a mirror than a lever. If a culture is already strong, these changes won’t fundamentally shift behaviour or relationships.”
This reflects an important reality that employment legislation can change policies, processes and legal responsibilities, but it cannot create trust where trust does not already exist.
Equally, organisations that have invested consistently in good leadership, fair treatment and effective communication are unlikely to find themselves making wholesale cultural changes simply because the legislation has changed.
As Sophie points out, it is organisations already experiencing challenges around trust, absence or inconsistent management that are likely to feel the greatest impact:
“If a culture is already strained… this legislation won’t fix it and may simply expose the cracks more clearly.”
The legislation becomes less about creating new problems and more about making existing ones impossible to ignore.
What does the legislation assume?
Beyond the practical implications of the Act, Sophie raises a broader question about the thinking behind it. She believes the legislation reflects an underlying assumption about the relationship between employers and employees by stating:
“The legislation appears to assume low trust between employers and employees, almost as if employers are acting in bad faith by default.”
Unlike how the ERA shapes the relationship of work, the majority of employers are trying to do the right thing. Employers want to create good workplaces, retain talented people and comply with employment law. For many SMEs in particular, the challenge is rarely a lack of intent. More often, it is balancing people management alongside commercial pressures, limited resources and competing priorities.
From Sophie’s perspective, legislation that starts from a position of distrust risks overlooking that reality.
The challenge for smaller businesses
The practical impact of approaching employment legislation from a place of distrust is likely to be felt most acutely by smaller organisations.
Unlike larger businesses with dedicated HR teams and internal legal support, SMEs often rely on business owners and managers to navigate complex employment issues alongside every other aspect of running the organisation.
Sophie believes this creates additional pressure:
“For SMEs in particular, the shift in balance, responsibility, and cost is not welcomed.”
This does not mean employers are resistant to improving workplace standards, it means the cumulative burden of compliance, administration and perceived legal risk can influence wider business decisions:
- Recruitment becomes more cautious.
- Managers become more risk aware.
- Growth decisions take longer.
These are often unintended consequences, but they can shape organisational culture just as much as the legislation itself.
Culture cannot be legislated
One of the strongest themes running through Sophie’s insight is the distinction between legal compliance and workplace culture. Employment law can define minimum standards, establish rights and responsibilities, and introduce processes that organisations are expected to follow. What it cannot do is create the behaviours that underpin healthy workplace cultures.
Trust, respect, consistency and psychological safety are not created through legislation. They develop over time through leadership, communication, fair decision making and the everyday interactions that shape an employee’s experience of work. Policies can support those behaviours, but they cannot replace them.
This is why organisations with strong cultures are likely to absorb many of the legislative changes without significant disruption. Their leaders are already managing people fairly, communicating openly and applying processes consistently. By contrast, organisations where trust is low or management practices are inconsistent may find that the new legislation simply brings existing issues into sharper focus, making them more difficult to ignore.
Looking beyond compliance
Sophie also questions whether the legislation addresses some of the wider issues affecting employment relationships, as she believes: “It [the ERA] strengthens employee rights but avoids the most meaningful reform: fixing the tribunal system.”
She points to lengthy tribunal delays and increasing pressure on employers as examples of where broader reform may have delivered greater value for both businesses and employees.
This reinforces an important point that employment law exists to provide protection and fairness, but the systems surrounding it also need to function effectively if confidence is to be maintained on both sides of the employment relationship.
What this means for organisations
The Employment Rights Act 2025 will undoubtedly change the way organisations manage their people, but Sophie believes its greatest impact may not come from the legislation itself. Instead, it will come from what the legislation reveals about the cultures that already exist within organisations.
Businesses with strong cultures are unlikely to see their values fundamentally altered because those values are already reflected in the way leaders communicate, make decisions and support their people. By contrast, organisations where trust is low, management is inconsistent or people processes have been neglected may find that the legislation simply exposes issues that have existed for some time. The Act does not create those challenges, but it does make them more visible and, in many cases, more difficult to ignore.
For leaders, this presents an opportunity to look beyond compliance and examine the everyday experience of their employees. While updating policies and procedures will be essential, long-term success will depend on whether organisations also invest in the behaviours that create healthy workplace cultures. Trust, fairness and consistency cannot be introduced through legislation alone; they are built through leadership and reinforced by the decisions managers make every day.
Ultimately, employment law can set expectations and establish minimum standards, but culture determines how those standards are experienced in practice. As organisations adapt to the Employment Rights Act 2025, those that focus on strengthening both compliance and culture are likely to be better placed to support their people and navigate change with confidence.