Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Act 2023

The Government has confirmed that the Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Act 2023 will come into force on 26 October 2024. The Act, which progressed through Parliament and received Royal Assent during the Conservative Government, will introduce a duty for employers to take positive steps to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace.

The Act will require employers to take ‘reasonable steps’ to prevent sexual harassment. Such steps could include having a clear and up-to-date policy on sexual harassment, providing mandatory training for all staff, having appropriate reporting methods in place, ensuring that that there is a thorough and independent investigation into any allegations of sexual harassment, and having workplace champions to provide support to those who experience or witness sexual harassment.

In its manifesto Labour pledged to amend the duty for employers to take ‘all reasonable steps’ to stop sexual harassment before it starts, which will be more onerous for employers. The impact of this could be that if an employee brings a claim for sexual harassment, and the employer was found to have taken reasonable steps (but not all reasonable steps) the employee’s claim could be successful. This change will not take place prior to the commencement of the Act, but may be introduced in the future as part of the Government’s plans to make a suite of changes to employment law.

Employers will need to take steps ahead of the commencement date to ensure that they do not fall foul of this duty. Our Employment team will shortly be publishing a toolkit (and hosting a webinar) to assist employers with their new duty to prevent sexual harassment, so stay tuned for further updates.