Category: Employment

On April 16, 2025, the UK Supreme Court delivered a headline making and landmark ruling in the case of For Women Scotland Ltd v The Scottish Ministers, clarifying that under the Equality Act 2010, the terms “woman” and “man” refer exclusively to biological sex and not gender identity. Following this judgment a transgender woman (even with a Gender Recognition Certificate) is not considered a “woman” for the purposes of the Equality Act.

It is important to note that this ruling doesn’t take away protections for trans people—they’re still protected under the law through “gender reassignment” rights, writes Ami Naru. But it does change how businesses interpret what “single-sex spaces” are legally allowed to mean. This decision has significant implications for the travel industry;

• For a travel business that offers women-only tours, hotel floors, or spaces for example, this ruling means you can restrict those areas to biological females if you want to. Under the clarified legal definitions, access to such spaces could be restricted based on biological sex. While the ruling permits the exclusion of transgender individuals from single-sex spaces, it does not mandate such exclusions, leaving room for inclusive practices. Now’s the time to double-check your policies. Do they make sense now that we have legal clarity on what a woman means? And how are they communicated to guests?
• Airlines, trains, and cruise lines offering gender-specific services (like restrooms or sleeper cabins) might want to re-evaluate how those are assigned—and make sure staff are trained to handle questions or complaints respectfully.
• For travel agents & tour operators who market women-only getaways or retreats, you’ll need to be clear on who those trips are for. Ensuring clarity in definitions and inclusivity policies will be crucial to avoid potential discrimination claims and to cater to a diverse clientele.

Some may say this decision puts travel companies in a tricky spot: on the one hand we now have legal clarity, but social expectations are still evolving. Many travellers value inclusivity, and no one wants to make guests feel excluded or disrespected.

Ultimately, the travel industry has always been about welcoming people, creating great experiences, and bringing the world closer together. While the Supreme Court’s ruling gives more legal structure around the definition of “woman,” the heart of good travel remains the same: respect, safety, and inclusivity for all.

The government is making significant changes to the apprenticeship landscape, with the goal of boosting economic growth and offering more flexibility to employers, writes Travlaw paralegal Rosie Riley. These changes, announced in February 2025 during National Apprenticeship week (10 -16 February 2025) , are designed to streamline the apprenticeship process and make it more accessible for both employers and apprentices. Here’s what you need to know.

Simplified Apprenticeship Process

The government is cutting down on the ‘red tape’ associated with apprenticeships. The annual Apprenticeship Funding Rules, released by the Department for Education, introduce several measures aimed at reducing administration for employers and apprentices. The onboarding process will be faster, and mandatory checkpoints throughout the apprenticeship will be reduced. This is a welcome shift for employers, making it easier to onboard and manage apprentices without getting slowed down by unnecessary intricacies.

More Flexibility with English and Maths Requirements

In a move that expands access to apprenticeships, the government is easing the English and Maths requirements. Previously, apprentices without the necessary GCSE qualifications in these subjects would have to take a Level 2 qualification. Now, employers will have the discretion to decide whether these qualifications are necessary, opening the door for more young people to enter apprenticeship programs without the barrier of additional qualifications.

This change is part of a wider initiative to offer apprenticeships to a more diverse group of individuals, including those with lower learning capabilities, ensuring more people have the opportunity to pursue a career through apprenticeships.

Reevaluating Active Learning Requirements

Another key update is the revision of the minimum active learning requirement. Previously, apprentices were required to complete active learning at set intervals throughout their apprenticeship. Under the new rules, apprentices will only need to engage in active learning at least once every three months. This gives employers and apprentices more flexibility to design apprenticeship programs that fit their needs without being constrained by rigid timelines.

Shorter Apprenticeship Duration

Starting in August 2025, the minimum duration for an apprenticeship will be reduced from 12 months to 8 months. This change aims to allow employers to train more workers in a shorter time frame, which will help boost jobs and contribute to economic growth. It’s a big shift that allows businesses to get the skilled workers they need more quickly.

Growth and Skills Levy

The Apprenticeship Levy, a tax on larger employers to fund apprenticeship training, is also set to be replaced by the new Growth and Skills Levy. The Apprenticeship Levy is a tax on large employers (who have a pay bill of at least £3 million annually) that can be accessed to pay for training apprentices. This approach was criticised for being too restrictive and for not allowing businesses enough flexibility to use the funds. Under the new system, employers will have more freedom to use the funds for not just apprenticeships but also short courses, online classes, and skills boot camps. The idea is to make apprenticeships more accessible and relevant to today’s workforce by offering a wider variety of training options.

In addition, the government’s new Skills England branch will allocate 50% of the funds to sectors where there is a high demand for skilled workers, like healthcare, engineering, construction, and social care. This targeted approach will help ensure that the apprenticeship funds are used effectively and align with the skills employers need most.

What Employers Need to Do

With these changes coming into effect, employers will need to adjust their apprenticeship strategies. The flexibility in qualifications and training methods should make it easier to offer apprenticeships and develop the workforce of the future. However, to take full advantage of these updates, employers will need to stay informed about the new rules and ensure they are utilising the available funds correctly.

Employers should also start thinking about how to integrate apprenticeships into their recruitment strategies. With more flexibility, apprenticeships will become an even more valuable tool for bringing new talent into your business. However, it is important to note that the presence of Level 7 apprenticeships in the market are likely to reduce to allow for younger workers to enter the market.

It’s important to remember that, with the changes to the Apprenticeship Levy and the introduction of the Growth and Skills Levy, there’s more opportunity than ever to invest in training and development. Taking advantage of these funding options will not only help your business grow but also ensure that the next generation of workers has the skills needed to thrive in the travel industry and beyond.

On 10 October 2024, the government introduced the Employment Rights Bill 2024-25 (Bill) into Parliament, meeting its commitment to introduce the Bill within 100 days of entering office. The Bill brings forward 28 individual employment reforms, some of these reforms are sketchy and simply provide ministers with the power to make regulations, with certain other proposals to be padded out after consultation. The Bill will have its second reading on 21 October 2024, and thereafter it will need to progress through both Houses of Parliament, and then receive Royal Assent. It is likely that most of the provisions will therefore not come in to effect until 2026 and even then may change along the way.

The Employment Rights Bill was labelled as a generational change in employment law, so what actually was proposed?

• Unfair dismissal will become a day-one right, subject to a new statutory probationary period, and the two-year qualifying period will disappear. Ministers will make regulations covering dismissal during the “initial period”, after consultation. The detail around the statutory probationary periods is yet to be revealed, but we do know the governments stated preference is for a maximum nine- month period of probation. Unlike now, some sort of process will have to be followed for dismissals during this initial period. This will be a significant change to present and employers will want a simple process. Employee representatives however, will not want probationary periods to be seen as qualifying periods for unfair dismissal via the back door.
• The Bill will restrict employers’ ability to “fire and rehire” by making it automatically unfair to dismiss an employee for refusing to agree to a change in their contract of employment. An exception will be made where the employer can show evidence of financial difficulties and demonstrate that the need to make the change in contractual terms was not reasonably avoidable. This proposal is a significant shift away from the current law, where employers simply need to show a good business reason requiring the change to terms to avoid an unfair dismissal. It is likely that these proposals will be contested by employers during the consultation, as they do not reflect the fact that employers may need to fire and rehire for other reasons than purely financial ones, such as changes in the law for example.
• We were already aware that from the 26th October 2024, a new duty to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace by taking “reasonable steps” was coming in. The Bill will further expand this duty requiring employers to take “all reasonable steps” to prevent employees from being sexually harassed at work. The government have reverted to the original proposal for this duty, before it was watered down during parliamentary debate. This is a significant step up for employers to meet the duty, especially since it will be directly enforceable by individuals. The Bill will also reintroduce employer liability for third party harassment. In due course, regulations will outline what constitutes “reasonable steps” for both the proactive duty and the third part harassment. The steps that may be specified include:
  • Carrying out assessments of a specified description,
  • publishing plans or policies of a specified description,
  • steps relating to the reporting of sexual harassment, and
  • steps relating to the handling of complaints.
• There was much talk about Flexible Working becoming the default position under this Bill. However, in a departure from what was promised what the Bill actually does is allow employers to be only able to refuse a request for flexible working where it is reasonable to do so in relation to one of the statutory reasons for refusal. So in effect the only thing that has changed is “reasonableness”. This not only applies to the process followed in dealing with flexible working requests, but will also now apply to the reason for refusing any such request. When employers refuse requests, they’ll need to explain the reason for the refusal and why that is reasonable. Therefore, despite a lot of attention and focus on what the landscape of flexible working will be under the new government and fear that flexible working would become a right, this proposal in fact does very little to change the existing position.
• Statutory Sick Pay will be available from the first sick day rather than the fourth day. The lower earnings limit of £123 a week will be removed, but the Bill sets out a lower level of sick pay for lower earners.
• Paternity leave will become a day-one right (currently requires 26 weeks’ service).
• Unpaid parental leave will become a day-one right (currently requires one year’s service).
• Unpaid bereavement leave will become a day-one right.

The above is simply a snap shot of the main provisions proposed, there will be various consultations launched and much may change along the way. For now employers need to keep a keen eye on developments (we will keep you posted) and start to reflect on how some of these changes may impact their business.