When the Employment Rights Act 2025 rules on guaranteed hours come into force, will employers still be able to use zero hours contracts for workers who want them?

The Employment Rights Act 2025 does not abolish zero hours contracts.

When the guaranteed hours provisions are brought into force (they are currently scheduled for 2027), there will be circumstances in which an employer will be obliged to offer contracts that guarantee a certain number of hours. We do not yet know what those circumstances will be.

Whatever the final details, the worker will always be able to refuse the offer of guaranteed hours and continue to work under a zero hours contract if that is their preference.