The Government have voted on and passed the (unexpected) amendment to the Employment Rights Bill (the “Bill”) which will ban employers from using confidentiality and non-disclosure agreements (“NDAs”) relating to harassment and discrimination. This significant move has been welcomed by many campaigners but has left others with concerns on the wider impact for victims and employers. So, does this new groundbreaking amendment act as a breakthrough for victims or close doors on their choice?
The Government have added (and passed) an entirely new section to the upcoming Bill which will void any provision in place between an employer and employee regarding harassment or discrimination. The accompanying press release makes it clear that this will cover both NDAs as well as confidentiality clauses in settlement agreements. It also applies to disclosures about how the employer responded to such allegations or disclosures.
The protection is wide and could go so far as to apply to contractors, trainees and work experience, as well as employees and workers. Such protection extends to victims or alleged victims, along with witnesses of such behaviour.
The use of NDAs as a means of silencing victims has been a hot topic for many years, with campaigners having fought hard for a change in the law. In the House of Commons debate on 15th September 2025, where the amendment was debated and passed, MP Louise Haigh stated that the UK would now begin to have the most comprehensive law on NDAs anywhere in the world.
Despite the support by campaigners and the Government, fears remain that the ban could negatively impact both victims and employers. For victims, they could have less say over what personal information becomes public, which could stop some victims from feeling able to speak up.
Many employers will be familiar with NDAs and settlement agreements and most, in our experience, use these responsibly and for commercially sound reasons. In some cases, the legal costs for defending a meritless claim involving allegations of discrimination or harassment outweigh the costs of settlement, so employers decide to settle cases, and are comforted by the confidentiality clause. Once the proposed changes come into force, the protection of confidentiality will fall away so employers will need to reconsider the benefits of settling. Instead, employers may decide to defend a claim to safeguard their reputation, but to the detriment of the time and costs involved with Tribunal cases. With employers being less inclined to offer settlement, many have voiced that this the new ban limits choices for victims who must now be prepared for public judgments, or may have no choice but to stay silent.
The Government has suggested there will be exceptions for an “excepted agreement” which meets conditions in specified regulations but no further details on what that constitutes and how it will differ from a settlement agreement have yet been released.
This new change was not included in the Governments Roadmap for implementing the Bill, see our earlier article, so it is not yet clear when this will take effect. The amendment has now been passed by the House of Commons and there is speculation that it could come into force as early as October 2025. It is crucial for employers to stay up to date with these developments and we, at Warners, will continue to provide updates.
In the meantime, employers could prepare for the change by:
We are also here to support you through the changes to your business by reviewing and updating your policies and procedures to ensure compliance with the legal changes, advising you on concerns or disputes with your workplace, reviewing your employment contracts and offering training to your staff. To get in touch, call 01732 770660 or email Hope at [email protected] or Louise Brenlund at [email protected]
We are running a series of seminars on Adapting Your Workplace, with the first focusing on the Bill and helping business to understand how this will impact them. To find out more and sign up to attend, click here.
We will keep you updated as consultations continue through the summer and through into early 2026, so be sure to return to our website and keep viewing our socials on this subject.
This article is for general information only and does not constitute legal or professional advice. Please note the law may have changed since this article was published. We do not accept responsibility or liability for any actions taken based on the information in this article.
