Key employment law considerations for employers in 2025

As we move into 2025, the legal landscape for employers is evolving rapidly. To ensure your business stays compliant and protected, it's essential to review key aspects of employment law.

Here's a roundup of some of the most important employment law considerations for employers this year:

1. Get your contracts of employment in order: Employers are legally required to provide employees with a written statement of employment terms before they start work or on their first day. In 2025, businesses need to ensure that their contracts of employment are up to date and reflect the latest legal developments, such as changes to flexible working rights, pay transparency, data protection, and family leave entitlements. It is also crucial that businesses adapt their contracts if their working practices have changes, such as permitting remote working or hybrid work arrangements, which have become more common post-pandemic. Failure to comply with these requirements could expose businesses to employment tribunal claims and present them with difficulty in defending them. Employers should also make sure that their employee handbooks and internal policies are up to date and reflect the actual day-today practice of the business.
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2. Deal with under performers: 2025 is already shaping up to be a turbulent year for employers with increases to the National Minimum Wage and employer NICs, together with the potential implementation of some of the reforms proposed in the Employment Rights Bill.  Therefore, employers need to get a grip of those employees who have been under performing and start performance improvement plans sooner rather than later.
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3. Get your sickness absence management procedure in order:  Now more than ever, employers need to ensure they have in place appropriate procedures for monitoring and dealing with sickness and long-term ill health absences.  It is essential to ensure that comprehensive absence policies are put in place, that they are clear, communicate expectations, and do not disproportionately disadvantage those with protected characteristics. Employers should also regularly monitor absence levels and take disciplinary action where appropriate.
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4. Update your post-termination restrictive covenants: Restrictive covenants—such as non-compete, non-solicitation, and confidentiality clauses—are enforceable, but they must be reasonable to protect the employer’s legitimate business interests. Restrictions must not be overly broad or punitive and should be tailored to each employee. Post-termination restrictive covenants are subject to judicial scrutiny and will only be enforceable if they are deemed reasonable in scope, duration, and geography to protect interests such as trade secrets, confidential information, or customer relationships, and whether they unreasonably restrict the employee's ability to find new employment. It is important to regularly review your post-termination restrictions to ensure that they are still suitable (especially if an employee has been promoted or changed roles) if you wish to rely on them in disputes following an employee departure.

For more information on any of the above, or to find out how Blacks' Employment Law team can assist you, please call us today on 0113 207 0000.