Among the leading themes of 2025 in HR were the debate over trans rights, the impact of artificial intelligence on jobs, how the Employment Rights Bill will work and the future of EDI policies in the face of attacks from the US government. Underlying issues included the UK economy’s lack of growth, engaging generation Z, and growing awareness of the importance of helping younger people with ADHD and other neurodiverse characteristics into work.
President Trump‘s inauguration was one major event with ramifications for HR as very quickly attacks on diversity and inclusion policies ensued. Meanwhile, McDonald’s UK chief executive Alistair Macrow was grilled by MPs over the fast-food chain’s policies around sexual harassment after a wave of allegations.
The Birmingham waste disposal strike begins over pay and conditions. Kristie Higgs, the Christian school assistant who was dismissed after sharing Facebook posts that her employer deemed transphobic and homophobic, won her case at the Court of Appeal. In the US and UK firms begin withdrawing and rethinking DEI policies in response to a more right-wing government agenda.
Keir Starmer announces NHS England will be abolished to cut bureaucracy and bring management of the health service back into democratic control. Cabinet Office minister Pat McFadden sends government departments instructions on how savings, to be achieved by cutting Civil Service headcount, must be made by the end of the decade. The job...
In a fight over President Donald Trump’s quest to acquire Greenland, the president made false and misleading statements about the Nobel Peace Prize and his own peace record. “Considering your Coun...