From 30 October 2026, employers will have an increased duty to protect staff from sexual workplace harassment. This change which is brought in by the Employment Rights Act 2025 requires employers to take “all reasonable steps” to prevent sexual harassment. Further, employers may also be found liable for sexual harassment or harassment in relation to any other protected characteristic under the Equality Act 2010, by third parties, unless they took all reasonable steps to prevent it.
The aim of this change is to strengthen protections for employees and help individuals feel safer at work.
Although the word “all” is a small addition to the previous requirement to take “reasonable steps”, it places a significantly higher burden on employers. Employers faced with a claim, will now need to show that there were no other reasonable steps which could have been taken to prevent the harassment occurring.
Employers have limited control over third party behaviour, making it much more difficult to prevent harassment by third parties than staff members.
The retail and hospitality sector should be particularly alert to these changes. Staff are likely to work in public facing roles and interact with customers, guests, contractors, delivery partners and other third parties on a regular basis. Staff may also be more likely to work in higher risk environments where alcohol is consumed, or staff are working alone or late at night.
If the Tribunal finds that an employer hasn't complied with the duty to prevent harassment, the amount of compensation awarded to an employee may be increased by up to 25%.
What changes should employers make?
It won’t be sufficient to show that allegations were taken seriously and investigated. Employers will have to show that they took proactive steps to mitigate harassment occurring in the first place.
There is currently no guidance on what constitutes “all reasonable steps” but the EHRC has published an 8-step guide to preventing sexual harassment at work.
What is reasonable will depend on the environment, size and resources of the employer, with larger organisations facing higher expectations. We have set out some practical steps below which employers should consider taking:
- Update policies and procedures to ensure they reflect the new requirements. All staff should be aware of what harassment in the workplace looks like, what to do if they experience or witness harassment, and how to handle any complaints. Encourage reporting and consider anonymous options.
- Conduct regular harassment risk assessments and expand them to cover third party harassment. Consider who employees interact with and anticipate where risks lie. Following the assessment, employers should put in place an action plan covering the steps which will be taken to address the identified risks.
- Issue anonymous staff surveys to gain an understanding of what's happening in the workplace and find out whether staff have been subject to or have witnessed harassment. Ask staff what measures they feel may make a difference.
- Employers should make it clear to third parties that inappropriate behaviour will not be tolerated, such as displaying visible signage and including provisions in contracts and terms of engagement. Processes should be in place for investigating allegations against third party perpetrators.
- Conduct regular and interactive training for all staff including managers. Practical examples should be used which are relevant to the appropriate area of work. Ensure staff understand how to prevent escalation and deal with harassment while it is occurring.
- Carry out an investigation into any complaints promptly. Complaints should be taken seriously, and a sensitive approach should be taken. Following any incident, employers should review whether there are further steps which could be taken to prevent similar events happening in the future.
Employers should record any steps taken and the reasoning behind any steps which were not considered reasonable.
How we can help
If you would like to discuss any of this information further, please contact Kirsty Ross or another of our Employment Law experts.