From 26 October 2024, a legal duty came into force for all UK employers: you must take proactive, reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace. This isn’t just about responding to complaints — it’s about creating a safer, more respectful working environment before issues arise.
This article outlines the key actions HR teams need to take to meet their obligations and reduce legal, financial, and reputational risks.
What’s changed?
The proactive duty under the Equality Act means employers must now actively prevent harassment — not just deal with it when it occurs. It applies to all forms of workplace harassment, whether from colleagues, managers, customers, contractors, or third parties, and covers both in-person and remote working environments.
The standard for what counts as “reasonable steps” will vary depending on your organisation’s size, resources, and the nature of your work. But the duty is continuous — not a once-a-year box-ticking exercise.
A Practical Checklist for HR
Use this as your roadmap for compliance and culture change:
Review and update your anti-harassment policies
Ensure your policy is clear, up to date, and tailored to your organisation. It should define sexual harassment, provide real-world examples (including third-party scenarios), outline reporting procedures, and explain available support.
Conduct a workplace risk assessment
Identify areas where sexual harassment risks might arise — such as lone working, customer-facing roles, or workplace events. Use tools like staff surveys, exit interviews, and anonymous feedback to uncover hidden issues.
Deliver tailored training
Provide regular, role-specific training to all staff, including managers and senior leaders. It should be interactive, practical, and include topics like bystander intervention and how to handle complaints. Track attendance and refresh regularly.
Create accessible reporting channels
Make it easy — and safe — for employees to raise concerns. Offer multiple reporting routes, including anonymous options, and actively encourage staff to use them. Every report must be taken seriously, investigated promptly, and documented.
Monitor and adapt
This is not a set-and-forget obligation. Regularly review the impact of your policies and training. Learn from incidents and feedback. Appoint a compliance lead to ensure your preventative steps are effective and evolving.
Keep clear records
Document everything — risk assessments, training sessions, complaints, and follow-up actions. Good records show that you are meeting your legal duty and help you spot patterns or recurring risks.
What’s at stake if you don’t comply?
1. Tribunal compensation uplift
If an employee wins a sexual harassment case and you’re found not to have taken reasonable steps to prevent it, a tribunal can increase the compensation by up to 25%. Since there’s no cap on discrimination awards, this can be costly.
2. EHRC enforcement
The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) can launch investigations, issue unlawful act notices, require formal action plans, and even take legal action — without any complaint being made.
3. Reputational damage
Beyond the legal risks, public failure to prevent harassment can severely harm your employer brand, morale, and retention. Once reputational damage is done, it’s hard to undo.
The message is clear: prevention is now a legal requirement, not just good practice. HR leaders must ensure that their organisation is actively managing risk, engaging staff, and continually improving its approach to preventing sexual harassment.
Taking reasonable steps now means you're not only protecting your people — you're protecting your organisation too.
This article was created with insights from Lex HR - your always-on HR legal assistant. Lex HR helps HR professionals navigate complex employment law with confidence, providing real-time, reliable advice tailored to your needs. Try it free today and see how much easier compliance can be.
