Issued by: Department for Business and Trade

Changes to end one-sided flexibility and uncertainty for workers through ban on exploitative zero hours contracts set out in consultation.

• Changes will end one-sided flexibility, help people plan their finances and daily lives, or enjoy benefits of a zero hours contract if they wish to keep one.

• This will help save workers in some of the most deprived areas up to £600 in lost income from the hidden costs of insecure work.

• Millions of workers who currently face uncertainty over their weekly hours and earnings will benefit from government reforms that will give them certainty and predictability over their income.

Ministers have today taken the next step to ending exploitative zero hours contracts by launching a consultation to help deliver reforms to benefit more than 18 million people who currently face uncertainty over their weekly hours and earnings.

Nearly six in ten of workers who have variable hours currently receive less than a week’s notice of their shifts, according to the Living Wage Foundation. That means millions of working people struggling to plan their lives and budgets. In the worst cases it means shifts cancelled the night before or even while people are already on their way to work.

This will help save workers in some of the most deprived areas up to £600 in lost income from the hidden costs of insecure work.

While those who value the flexibility of a zero hours contract will still be able to choose one, exploitative arrangements, where employers take all the flexibility and workers bear all the risk, will be banned.

Workers, who qualify, will also be entitled to receive reasonable notice of their shifts and a payment if their shifts are cancelled, moved, or curtailed at short notice. This will stop workers travelling into work for shifts or arranging care for children and relatives, only for a shift to be cancelled at the last minute without pay.

This open consultation, which will close at the end of August, will ask employers and workers about a range of potential hours thresholds to help the Government to strike the right balance between protecting workers from insecure work and retaining flexibility for businesses and workers who benefit from it, while building a more resilient economy and guarding against unintended consequences from this major change to the Labour market.

Employers who already provide this security and predictability for their workers will benefit from a level playing field. These measures will help drive up standards and eliminate undercutting.

Business Secretary Peter Kyle said:

"It’s not right that people can work regular hours but still have no certainty about their pay from week to week. These vital changes will mean more certainty for millions of people and will save the lowest paid workers hundreds of pounds.

"Banning exploitative zero hours contracts is totemic because this government believes that people should be treated with dignity and respect at work.

"We’re consulting because we need to get the detail right to ensure these reforms work in practice and guard against unintended consequences from this major change to the labour market."

Employment Rights Minister Kate Dearden said:

"Ending uncertainty over hours and pay is one of the best ways we can boost living standards for millions of people and families across the country.

"These reforms put workers in the driving seat, giving those who want guaranteed hours the certainty they deserve, whilst protecting others who prefer the flexibility a zero hours contract offers."

Businesses can reduce staff turnover, improve skills, and boost productivity by improving job quality and workforce wellbeing by giving workers more security. This in turn can provide a boost to growth in the economy.

The government wants to hear from workers, employers and other organisations to help shape the final detail of these reforms and ensure they work in practice.

Niall Mackenzie, Acas Chief Executive, said:

"These reforms aim to end irresponsible use of zero hours contracts, with guaranteed hours for workers to help give them financial stability and security. Some workers may value the flexibility of a zero hours contract if they are being used fairly and responsibly and this consultation aims to get this balance right.

"I would encourage employers and workers to respond with evidence on what would work best in practice, alongside any further guidance that would be useful. Acas currently has free advice for employers on how to use zero hours contracts responsibly, which will be updated once these new changes come into effect.”

Notes to Editors

• The consultation has been published here and will close on 25th August 2026: Make Work Pay: ending one-sided flexibility – reforms of zero hours and similar contracts - GOV.UK [https://tinyurl.com/2hraa442]

• Living Wage Foundation data on variable hours workers receiving less than a week’s notice of shifts: Almost one-third of working adults given less than a week’s notice of working hours [https://tinyurl.com/bdhdjt5v]

• Right to guaranteed hours - Employers will be required to offer qualifying workers guaranteed hours reflecting the number of hours they work over reference period, which will be further set out in regulations. The Government is consulting on the length of the initial reference period with a Government preference of 12 weeks. Qualifying workers will be able to reject an offer of guaranteed hours and remain on a zero hours contract if they wish.

• Right to reasonable notice of shifts - Employers will be required to provide eligible workers with reasonable notice of shifts. If an employer schedules shifts with unreasonable notice, the worker can bring a tribunal claim. The tribunal will decide whether the worker was given reasonable notice of the shift. The Government will use regulations to state how much notice should be ‘presumed reasonable’. This will be the tribunals’ starting point. The Government will also set out the factors the tribunals should look at when determining whether the notice was reasonable or not as part of this consultation.

• Right to payment for shifts cancelled, curtailed, or moved at short notice - Employers will be required to make payments to eligible workers if they cancel, move or curtail a shift at short notice.

• Please find below some scenarios which explain the benefits of the policy and how it could affect the lives of everyday workers. These examples are fictional and purely to assist with understanding the policy:

• Jordan from Middlesbrough is 24 and works as a warehouse operative on a zero hours contract. Some weeks he gets 35 hours, other weeks he gets none. The new reforms could give Jordan an opportunity to qualify for the right to guaranteed hours – a right intended to improve stability and certainty in working hours.

• Priya from Leicester is 38 and works in a hotel as a housekeeper. She relies on her zero hours contract as her main source of income, but her employer regularly cancels her shifts with less than 24 hours’ notice — sometimes after she’s already arranged childcare for her two children. When that happens, she doesn’t get paid, but she still has to cover the childcare cost. Under the new reforms, Priya could be entitled to a payment when shifts are cancelled at short notice, meaning she’s not bearing the full cost of the flexibilities her employer wants or needs.

• Amara from Wolverhampton is 32 and works through an agency for a care home while studying part-time for a nursing qualification. She is given very little notice of her shifts, which makes it almost impossible to plan her classes or coursework around her work schedule. She’s had to turn down shifts she could have worked — and miss lectures she wanted to attend — because of last-minute changes. The new reforms could give Amara reasonable notice of her shifts, helping her manage both her career and her studies without having to choose between them.

• Marcus from Bristol is 58 and works in a local shop on a zero hours contract, which suits him perfectly. Having taken early retirement from a full-time teaching role, he enjoys being able to pick up work when it suits him and turn it down when he wants time to travel or spend with his grandchildren. He’s now worried that reforms might force him onto a contract with set hours that would take away the flexibility he’s built his lifestyle around. In reality, Marcus will be able to stay on a zero hours contract if he chooses.

Tags

More Like This

Government unveils most significant reforms to employment rights

New laws bring the world of work into the 21st century

Up to £600 cash boost for Britain’s lowest paid to help kickstart the economy

Biggest upgrade to workers’ rights in a generation comes one step closer

Employment reforms will ‘help solve UK’s Productivity Puzzle’

Almost a million young people to benefit from expanded support, new training, and work experience opportunities

An update on the Employment Rights Bill

Business leaders and unions to work hand in hand to deliver new plans to Make Work Pay