The UK government has published new policy plans aimed at strengthening workplace equality through enhanced gender pay gap reporting and support for employees experiencing menopause. The initiative forms part of the wider programme implementing the Employment Rights Act 2025 and the government’s “Make Work Pay” agenda.
The government has announced plans to require large employers to publish gender equality action plans alongside their gender pay gap data. These plans are intended to explain the reasons behind any reported pay gaps and set out the steps the organisation intends to take to address them.
The government has also confirmed that menopause support will form part of the expected workplace measures within these plans. For many employers, this will bring menopause policies into the core framework of equality and workforce management.
Current gender pay gap reporting rules
Under the existing gender pay gap reporting regulations introduced under the Equality Act 2010, employers with 250 or more employees are required to publish annual gender pay gap data.
The reporting framework requires organisations to disclose a series of pay metrics. These include the mean and median gender pay gap in hourly pay, the mean and median gender pay gap in bonus pay, the proportion of men and women receiving bonuses and the distribution of male and female employees across the organisation’s pay quartiles.
While many employers choose to publish narrative explanations alongside these figures, the law does not currently require organisations to explain the causes of any pay gap or to set out a plan for addressing it.
The new proposal is intended to change that position.
New gender equality action plans April 2026
The government has launched employer gender equality action plans and is encouraging organisations with 250 or more employees to publish the steps they are taking to reduce their gender pay gap and support employees through menopause.
Although detailed regulations have not yet been published, the policy framework indicates that employers will be expected to analyse the factors contributing to their organisation’s gender pay gap and identify the structural issues affecting pay outcomes across different levels of the workforce. Action plans are also likely to include measures aimed at improving gender representation across pay bands, initiatives designed to support the progression and retention of female employees and a review of recruitment, promotion and reward practices.
The plans are also expected to cover workplace measures supporting employees through menopause.
The policy objective is to move gender pay gap reporting away from a purely transparency-based model toward one where employers explain the causes of inequalities identified in workforce data and demonstrate the steps being taken to address them.
Menopause support within workplace equality plans
The government has confirmed that menopause support will form part of the broader equality policy framework linked to the new action plans. This reflects increasing policy attention on the impact that menopause symptoms can have on workforce participation and career progression for women in mid-career.
In practical terms, employers may be expected to introduce workplace measures such as training for managers on menopause awareness, the development of clear workplace menopause policies and greater use of flexible working arrangements where symptoms affect an employee’s ability to maintain normal work patterns. Employers may also consider practical workplace adjustments, including temperature control, flexible breaks or guidance on how employees can request support.
Although menopause is not a protected characteristic under the Equality Act 2010, employment tribunals have increasingly examined menopause-related issues through the lens of disability discrimination, sex discrimination and age discrimination. The government’s policy direction places greater emphasis on preventative workplace management.
Implementation timeline
The government’s implementation roadmap indicates a phased approach. Employers are expected to be encouraged to adopt gender equality action plans from April 2026. This initial phase is intended to allow organisations time to develop internal processes, analyse workforce data and begin implementing equality measures.
The government has indicated that the current voluntary phase may lead to a future compulsory framework for large employers, with further detail expected once the reporting rules are finalised.
Secondary legislation will set out the precise reporting format and enforcement framework once the final regulations are introduced.
What employers should do now
Although the mandatory requirement has not yet taken effect, employers may benefit from reviewing their current gender pay gap reporting processes and considering how action planning could be incorporated into their governance framework. This may include reviewing the internal analysis used to produce gender pay gap figures, identifying structural drivers of any pay differences within the organisation and evaluating recruitment, promotion and retention practices that influence gender representation across pay levels.
Employers may also consider whether existing workplace policies adequately address menopause and whether managers have appropriate guidance on supporting employees experiencing symptoms that affect their work.
For organisations that already publish voluntary narrative explanations alongside their gender pay gap reports, the new framework may formalise practices that are already in place. For others, the reform introduces a clearer expectation that employers explain the causes of pay gaps and demonstrate how they are addressing them.
Further detail on the legal framework will be confirmed once the government publishes the draft regulations implementing the new reporting requirements.
Author
Gill Laing is a qualified Legal Researcher & Analyst with niche specialisms in Law, Tax, Human Resources, Immigration & Employment Law.
Gill is a Multiple Business Owner and the Managing Director of Prof Services - a Marketing Agency for the Professional Services Sector.
