Time To Act Now

Deadline for employers to address new sexual harassment law is October 26th 2024

What is the new sexual harassment legislation?

From October 2024 the Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Bill will strengthen existing protection for employees against sexual harassment.

The new duty will come into effect on 26th October 2024 and will impose a legal duty on employers to proactively prevent sexual harassment, rather than simply reacting to complaints. Businesses which fail to comply with the new duty face both financial and reputational risks.

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How can employers prepare for the new legislation?

Effective sexual harassment prevention requires focusing on several areas. These include creating a supportive organisational culture, establishing clear sexual harassment policies and procedures, providing annual awareness training for all employees, and ensuring reporting steps are well promoted and investigations are conducted fairly and quickly.

What are the consequences if employers don't take reasonable steps?

Employers who fail to comply with the new duty could face significant financial and reputational damage.

Crucially, where an employer is found to have breached its duty to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment, the employment tribunal may automatically uplift any damages awarded against them by up to 25%.

Damages for allowing discriminatory harassment can be substantial, and the financial impact on the organisation can be devastating.

It is, therefore, essential for employers to take proactive steps to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace if they hope to avoid serious financial and reputational damage.

4 ways we can help implement these new legislative changes

Present to Senior Team

We will present a walk through to your senior team, outlining the new legislation and offering practical guidance on ensuring full compliance with the new legislation.

Audit Your Organisation

We will collaborate closely with key stakeholders within your business to identify any gaps, weaknesses, or grey areas in your existing policies and procedures.

Implement a Legal Framework

Our team will develop an action plan that addresses any shortcomings in your safeguarding measures and will focus on areas such as support systems, reporting procedures, and complaint handling.

Provide Tailored Training

We will deliver comprehensive training to reinforce awareness on the prevention of sexual harassment, designed to meet the specific needs of your management, senior teams, and all employees.

Our prevention of sexual harassment training

To help address sexual harassment in the workplace, we've developed two training modules. One module is tailored for employers and management, while the other is focused on employees and teams. These modules reflect a thorough understanding of how to tackle sexual harassment in the workplace and ensure your organisation addresses the issue.

Through our training, we will explore:

Understanding what sexual harassment is and recognising its various forms
How to develop the ability to identify and challenge inappropriate behaviour
Responding to harassment claims and the investigation steps

Our audit approach

Our in-house barristers will actively collaborate with essential stakeholders and management within your organisation.

We will examine the existing measures in place to prevent and address instances of sexual harassment. This includes:

Conducting a review of your current policies
Evaluate your reporting and safeguarding procedures
Assess your support systems, including training and resources
Review your complaints handling process
Review messaging and communications

Through this process, we aim to pinpoint any potential weaknesses and develop a strategic plan to enhance these measures, thereby ensuring that employees are safeguarded and that all legal requirements are effectively met.

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