Sexual harassment in the workplace

The new Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Act 2023 will come into force on the 26th October 2024.

This Act will bring in a new positive legal obligation on employers for them to take reasonable steps to protect their workers from sexual harassment.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has powers to take enforcement action where an employer fails to meet its duties under the act. Employment tribunals will also be given powers to increase compensation for sexual harassment by up to 25%.

To help employers understand their obligations and comply with the new requirements, the EHRC have updated their guidance to include information on the new preventative duty.

You can see the new guidance including the new section, see: https://www.equalityhumanrights.com/equality/equality-act-2010/sexual-harassment-and-harassment-work-technical-guidance-0

As always, we’d strongly recommend that, if you have any employees, or are anticipating any recruitment, you speak to an HR advisor to ensure you understand the new rules in good time. They will explain the implications as they apply to your business, and give you practical steps to ensure you communicate the new regulations to your team, as appropriate. If you need an introduction to an HR advisor we’ve known and worked with for many years, please just ask!