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Guaranteed hours exposure calculator
This calculator shows how many of your workers would qualify for a guaranteed hours offer under the Employment Rights Act 2025 zero-hours reforms, expected to commence in 2027. Enter your workforce once and see the result across every low hours threshold and reference period the government is still consulting on, from an 8-hour to a 20-hour threshold and a 12, 26 or 52-week reference period. All calculation happens in your browser. Your workforce data is never sent to a server, never logged and never stored.
Before you rely on these figures
- The regulations that will implement this reform are not yet made, and the final parameters are not yet fixed.
- Figures shown are illustrative only and do not constitute legal advice.
- Based on the consultation proposals published on 2 June 2026, in the "Make Work Pay: ending one-sided flexibility" consultation. See the GOV.UK consultation and the Employment Rights Act 2025.
How many workers fall into each typical weekly hours band?
Enter whole numbers of workers. This gives an indicative answer in under thirty seconds — for precise, week-by-week figures use Detailed mode.
Quick mode assumes each worker's typical hours as a steady average. With medium variability, some workers close to a threshold could sit on either side of it in reality. Upload a CSV in Detailed mode for week-by-week accuracy.
For a 12h threshold over a 12 week reference period
Add your workforce above to see results.
Scenario matrix
Qualifying workers under every threshold and reference period combination the government is considering, so you see the full range of exposure rather than one number.
| Threshold \ Reference period | 12 weeks | 26 weeks | 52 weeks |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8h | — | — | — |
| 12h | — | — | — |
| 16h | — | — | — |
| 20h | — | — | — |
Get told the moment this becomes real
One email, when the regulations are actually made: the final low hours threshold, the final reference period, and what it means for a business your size. Nothing else — no newsletter.
We will email you when the guaranteed hours regulations are made, what the final threshold and reference period are, and what it means for a business your size. Nothing else. Unsubscribe at any time. See our privacy notice.
Downloads immediately in your browser. No workforce data is sent anywhere to produce it.
How this is calculated
A worker is modelled as qualifying when their average weekly hours over the selected reference period are at or above the selected threshold. Weeks before a worker started are excluded from their average rather than counted as zero. This is one reasonable reading of the consultation proposals, not a statement of settled mechanics, because the regulations have not been made. If the final rules differ, the numbers on this page will move.