Fire and Rehire Changes Delayed to March 2027: What to Do Now

A registered manager sits down with the rota for the new year. Occupancy has shifted, two night posts are no longer needed and the obvious answer is to move those staff onto days. Under the contracts in the filing cabinet that has always been a conversation, sometimes a difficult one, but a conversation. From March 2027 the rules around that conversation change, and the Government has just given providers a little more time to get ready for it.

What has changed in the fire and rehire timetable

The Employment Rights Act 2025 introduces new protections against dismissal and re-engagement, the practice usually described as fire and rehire. When the Act passed, the fire and rehire provisions were expected to take effect during 2026, then January 2027. On 22 October 2026 the Government published a revised implementation timetable and the provisions now take effect in March 2027.

Alongside the delay, the Government opened a consultation on a revised statutory Code of Practice on Dismissal and Re-engagement. That consultation closes on 17 December 2026. The existing Code is expected to be withdrawn in March 2027 and the new Code is not expected to come into force until Summer 2027, so there may be a gap of several months with no Code in place.

Regulations setting out the detail on shift patterns, expenses and benefits are still to come. The Government has said it aims to bring them into force at the same time as the main provisions.

What the new protection actually does

Once in force, dismissing an employee, or dismissing and replacing them, in order to impose a restricted variation to their contract will be automatically unfair. The only exception is where the employer can show it is in financial difficulties that threaten its ability to carry on, and that it had no reasonable alternative. The Government has described dismissal and re-engagement as a last resort, and the exception is drawn narrowly.

The restricted variations are the changes that matter most in a care setting. Based on the Act and the Government’s published consultation response, they cover:

• reducing or removing pay, or other sums and entitlements payable to the employee;
• reducing holiday entitlement;
• changes to pensions or pension schemes;
• changes to the hours or shifts worked; and
• inserting a variation clause that would let the employer make any of these changes without the employee’s agreement.

Most expenses and benefits are carved out, but three remain caught: reducing or removing travel expenses, including mileage; reducing or removing accommodation expenses; and withdrawing long-term accommodation provided as a benefit in kind. For domiciliary and supported living providers, mileage is the one to watch.

Only contractual terms count. A benefit that sits in a non-contractual policy can still be changed in the normal way, and the Government has confirmed that a contractual benefit covered by a genuine existing variation clause can also still be changed, although tribunals read such clauses narrowly.

Why rotas and shift patterns are the pressure point

The consultation response is specific about shift patterns. Moving someone from daytime to night-time working, or the reverse, will be a restricted variation, with night-time defined as 11pm to 6am. So will moving someone from weekday to weekend working, or the reverse. Smaller adjustments, such as pushing a day shift back by a few hours or changing an availability window, are not restricted variations, although they remain subject to the ordinary unfair dismissal rules and the Code.

That maps directly onto how care services flex. Changes in occupancy, a new commissioning contract, a reshaped waking night provision or a children’s home moving to a different staffing model all tend to arrive as changes to who works when. The point is that from March 2027 the route to that change runs through agreement, not through notice of dismissal and a new contract.

What to review between now and March 2027

None of this requires panic, and most well-run providers will find they are already doing much of it. The delay is best treated as planning time. We would suggest boards and senior managers ask for a short review covering the following.

Contracts. Pull a sample of current contracts across roles and sites and check what they actually say about hours, shift patterns, location, pay elements and pension. Older contracts and contracts inherited through an acquisition often differ from what people believe they say.

Variation clauses. Identify any clauses that purport to allow changes without agreement, and be realistic about how far they reach. Inserting new ones after the change will itself be a restricted variation.

Rota planning. Look ahead at where night or weekend working is likely to change in the next 18 months, whether through occupancy, commissioning or service redesign, and start those conversations with staff early rather than in a hurry.

Benefits and expenses. Make a list of which benefits are contractual and which sit in policy, with mileage and accommodation flagged separately.

How changes are agreed. Set out a clear consultation route for contractual change, record it and use it. Good records of genuine consultation will matter whichever version of the Code is in force.

The new Code. Note the Summer 2027 date for the revised Code of Practice and plan to update your procedures and manager training when it lands.

This is employment law rather than regulation, so take advice on any specific case, particularly where a change is already under way or a dismissal is being considered.

Where we can help

Workforce change sits close to governance, safe staffing and the evidence you show a regulator, which is why we tend to look at it alongside the rest of a provider’s compliance picture. If you would like a second pair of eyes on how your contracts and rota plans line up with the March 2027 changes, book a 15-minute call with the HLTH Compliance team.