Employment Rights Bill: Government motion to insist on disagreement to LA23 and LA106 to LA120, not to insist on Commons Amendment 120C, 120D and 120E but to propose Gov (a) to (f) in lieu of LA23 and LA106 to LA120
300Ayes
96Noes
Carried · majority 204 · Government won254 did not vote
650 Members · Aye 300 · No 96 · DNV 254 · grey dots in centre are abstentions
Analysis
Commons
Commons
Parliament voted on 8 December 2025 to back the government's position in the final legislative exchange over the Employment Rights Bill, rejecting a series of Lords amendments (numbered 23 and 106 to 120) and replacing them with the government's own substitute provisions. The motion passed by 300 votes to 96. The vote is part of the "ping-pong" process, in which a bill travels back and forth between the Commons and the Lords until both chambers agree on the same text. By insisting on its disagreement with the Lords' amendments and substituting its own wording, the government asserted Commons authority over the shape of the final legislation. The Employment Rights Bill is one of the most significant pieces of labour market legislation in decades, introducing day-one unfair dismissal rights, guaranteed-hours contracts for zero and low-hours workers, stronger trade union access rights, reforms to Statutory Sick Pay, and tougher duties on employers to prevent sexual harassment. Labour and Labour and Co-operative MPs voted unanimously in favour, providing all 295 of the government's supporting votes, with a small number of independents adding to the total. Conservative MPs provided the bulk of the opposition, with 84 voting no; they were joined by the Democratic Unionist Party (4 votes), Reform UK (2 votes), and a handful of smaller parties and independents. There were no Conservative votes on the aye side and no Labour defections, making this a clean party-line division. The Bill has now completed its parliamentary passage and received Royal Assent as the Employment Rights Act 2025.
Voting Aye meant
Support the government's position, rejecting the Lords' amendments to the Employment Rights Bill and accepting the government's substitute provisions in their place.
Voting No meant
Prefer the Lords' amendments over the government's alternatives, or oppose the overall direction of the Employment Rights Bill and its expanded worker and trade union rights.
Each row is one party. The stacked bar gives the within-party split of Aye / No / Absent; the columns on the right give the raw counts. The whip column shows the published party position — “Free vote” means the whip was formally removed for this division.
Party
Whip
Aye / No / Abs
Aye
No
Abs
Labour Party
Whipped Aye
266
0
95
Conservative and Unionist Party
Whipped No
0
84
32
Liberal Democrats
—
0
0
71
Labour and Co-operative Party
Whipped Aye
29
0
13
Independent
—
2
3
8
Scottish National Party
—
0
0
9
Reform UK
—
0
2
6
Sinn Féin
—
0
0
7
Democratic Unionist Party
Whipped No
0
4
1
Green Party of England and Wales
—
0
0
4
Plaid Cymru
—
0
0
4
Social Democratic and Labour Party
—
1
0
1
Your Party
—
0
1
1
Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
—
0
0
1
Restore Britain
—
0
1
0
Speaker
—
0
0
1
Traditional Unionist Voice
—
0
1
0
Ulster Unionist Party
—
0
1
0
Source · Hansard · UK Parliament Votes API · whip status from announced positions; “free vote” indicates the whip was formally removed
Supports the government amendments as a balanced negotiated compromise between unions and businesses that will bring the Bill into law, with unfair dismissal protection from 6 months qualifying period from January 2027.Labour · Voted aye · Read full speech (3,758 words) →
Opposes the Bill as a 'charter for jobless generation' that will destroy youth employment, increase union power through automatic political fund deductions and repealed strike ballot thresholds, and remove compensation caps without impact assessment.Conservative · Voted no · Read full speech (975 words) →
Strongly supports the Bill as fulfilling a manifesto mandate and delivering job security, particularly for zero-hours contract workers; welcomes the compromise on timing and urges the Lords not to further obstruct.Labour · Voted aye · Read full speech (782 words) →
Welcomes the 6-month compromise but opposes the removal of the compensation cap as unilaterally sprung on stakeholders without consultation, and will abstain rather than support the motion.Liberal Democrats · Voted no_vote_recorded · Read full speech (1,969 words) →
Opposes the compromise as a betrayal of the day-one unfair dismissal pledge; argues 6 months still allows unfair dismissal and will weaken protections for young, ethnic minority, and disabled workers.Labour · Voted no_vote_recorded · Read full speech (777 words) →
Supports the Bill pragmatically as the best available outcome despite losing day-one rights; urges swift passage and warns Lords against further obstruction.Labour · Voted aye · Read full speech (1,237 words) →
Supports the amendments as a negotiated deal reflecting constructive union-business dialogue; argues the 6-month change will benefit 6.35 million workers and removing the cap ensures proper compensation.Labour · Voted aye · Read full speech (720 words) →
Sources
Division dataUK Parliament Votes API
DebateHansard · Commons
Stance analysisAI analysis · Claude 4.x
LicenceOpen Parliament Licence v3.0