As of October 26th 2024, the new Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Act 2023 on employers’ responsibilities to prevent sexual harassment at work will come into force, placing a greater responsibility on employers to take proactive measures to prevent and address sexual harassment in the workplace.
While the existing Equality Act 2010 already prohibits sexual harassment and encourages employers to take preventative measures, the new amendment will legally obligate employers to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment from occurring. This means that having a policy in place is no longer sufficient. Organisations must implement and communicate clear, actionable steps that go beyond mere compliance. These steps should be tailored to the unique risks and challenges faced by each organisation, depending on its industry, workforce composition, and external factors like client interactions.
Failure to implement these steps can have significant consequences. If an employee succeeds in a sexual harassment claim at an employment tribunal, and it’s determined that the employer failed to fulfil their duty to take adequate preventative measures, the tribunal may increase the awarded compensation by up to 25%.
Given that there is no cap on compensation for discriminatory harassment, this could result in a significant sum that would have been avoidable if necessary preventative measures were demonstrated.
While some may argue that this places an unfair burden on employers, it is important to remember that sexual harassment has a detrimental effect not only on individuals but also on an organisation’s bottom line. More notably, according to Deloitte, workplace sexual harassment can lead to significant losses in productivity, absenteeism, staff turnover, and manager time, costing employers approximately $2.6 billion annually.
In short, the financial consequences of ignoring this issue far outweigh the investments needed to prevent and address sexual harassment. As such, employers should see the new legislation as an opportunity to proactively create a safe and respectful work environment for their employees rather than simply complying with the legal requirements.
And this all starts with effective communication.
From the C-Suite to frontline workers, everyone must understand that preventing sexual harassment is now a proactive obligation, not just a reactive response. They must understand what these legal changes mean, how they impact day-to-day operations, and what steps the organisation is taking to comply.
Make all related policies and procedures unmissable
As HR leaders, you know that policies are the foundation of any organisation’s approach to handling workplace misconduct. They stipulate rules and expectations of behaviour that apply to all employees regardless of their role or level, and they serve as an essential tool in protecting both employees and the company from harm.
But updating your policies is one thing. Do your employees know where to find them? Better yet, are they being made aware of any changes or updates?
When it comes to sexual harassment prevention, you do not want to leave any room for confusion or misunderstandings. So when you update your HR policies and procedures and save them securely in your HR platform, make sure to communicate this across the organisation.
By this, we mean to communicate the changes to policies and procedures through various means, including email, HR newsletters, team meetings, town hall meeting, and don’t forget your internal news feed.
Create a banner that appears when employees log into the HR software, and make sure that this is also visible in the platform’s mobile app. You may also want to create a short company-wide video announcement, distribute separate posts on your internal news feed on the steps that will be taken to ensure prevention, and send out a poll to ensure that employees have seen the changes and understand their responsibilities. We even recommend setting a mandatory company-wide task via your HR platform for employees to review and sign off on the updated policies within a specific timeframe. This way, you have a record of who has completed it and when.
Educate to inform
While having clear policies and procedures is essential in preventing sexual harassment, sometimes the best form of communication can be in the disguise of education.
There is no right or wrong way to present this information . You could choose to conduct in-person training, online training, or a combination of both. However, whatever method you choose, ensure that it is not only interactive and engaging but also tailored to the nature of your business.
It is also recommended that you create separate training for employees and leaders, as they have different responsibilities for preventing and addressing sexual harassment. But, essentially, regardless of the hierarchical level your are targeting in your trainings, what you want to portray in each learning module is how to spot and prevent sexual harassment, and how to respond and report incidents if it occurs.
And just as adherence to the policy updates is mandatory, so should the training. Ensure you notify the workforce of the introduction to the training modules, set time-critical mandatory tasks via your HR platform, and make sure that you track and monitor employee completion of the training, ensuring that refreshment trainings are conducted at least once a year.
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Protect your people and your organisation
At the end of the day, preventing sexual harassment in the workplace is not just about avoiding legal consequences or financial losses. It’s about protecting your people and creating a safe, inclusive, and respectful work environment for all.
By implementing and ensuring visibility and compliance of your updated policies, communicating effectively with employees on the actionable steps that will be taken, and providing comprehensive training, you are taking the first steps towards creating a culture of respect and understanding.
These steps are the foundation for communicating the changes of the new legislation across the organisation. But it doesn’t stop there. You must ensure that all this information is stored in one secure unified platform via your HR software and that rules and protections are placed to ensure that only the right people have access to edit and monitor compliance.
At elementsuite, we understand the importance of safeguarding your people and organisation. That’s why our HR platform offers secure document storage, customisable communication tools, and robust training and compliance tracking features to help you communicate the steps to preventing sexual harassment and foster a positive workplace culture.
Contact us today to learn more about how we can support your organisation in communicating and enforcing your sexual harassment prevention policies.
