Workplace protections against sexual harassment are being strengthened again with significant changes taking effect from 30 October 2026. Employers will face greater scrutiny of the steps they take to prevent harassment and will need to demonstrate a proactive approach to managing workplace risks.
Compliance will not simply be about having policies in place. Employers will need to think more carefully about workplace culture, training, reporting mechanisms, risk assessments and how they manage risks arising from customers, clients, contractors and other third parties.
In this article, we explain what is changing and share practical steps employers can take now to prepare.
How is the law changing on sexual harassment in the workplace?
From 30 October 2026, employers will be required to take all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment in the course of employment. This represents a strengthening of the current duty to take reasonable steps and places an even greater emphasis on prevention, risk assessment and proactive action by employers. New provisions will also introduce clear employer liability for certain instances of harassment by third parties, such as customers, clients, contractors and suppliers.
Our Workplace Harassment Prevention package is designed to provide employers with the resources needed to comply with these legal obligations.
When does the law on sexual harassment in the workplace change?
Workplace protections against sexual harassment have been strengthened significantly in recent years. Further reforms are due to take effect through the Employment Rights Act 2025, which is being implemented in stages during 2026 and 2027.
- Sexual harassment and third party harassment
Since 26 October 2024, employers have been under a duty to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment of employees. The next significant reforms come into force on 30 October 2026, strengthening that duty so that employers will need to take all reasonable steps and introducing explicit liability for third-party harassment.
- Whistle-blowing – sexual harassment as a protected disclosure
Since 6 April 2026, worker disclosures relating to sexual harassment have also been expressly included within whistleblowing legislation. This means that workers who raise concerns about sexual harassment may benefit from additional legal protection against detriment or dismissal for speaking up, provided the legal requirements for whistleblowing protection are met.
While a whistleblowing disclosure must still be made in the public interest, concerns about workplace sexual harassment will often satisfy this requirement because they may affect others in the workplace as well as the individual raising the concern. Employers should therefore ensure that complaints and concerns are taken seriously and handled appropriately. Such complaints may already be protected under existing legislation, but it seems the government wishes to raise awareness of sexual harassment.
- What about Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDAs)?
The Employment Rights Act 2025 also introduces future restrictions on the use of non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) in cases involving harassment and discrimination. Although the detailed framework is still being developed and some NDAs may remain permissible where statutory safeguards are met, the reforms reflect a wider shift towards transparency, accountability and ensuring workers are not prevented from raising concerns about inappropriate workplace behaviour. These changes are expected to come into force in 2027 following further consultation and secondary legislation.
What is the background to the additional protection against sexual harassment in the workplace?
The changes being introduced under the Employment Rights Act 2025 reflect an increased focus on prevention, accountability and creating safer workplace cultures, with employers expected to take a more proactive approach to identifying and managing risks.
Employers have been under an obligation to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment in the course of employment since October 2024. From 30 October 2026 this is being upgraded to all reasonable steps.
The growing focus on workplace sexual harassment is also reflected in increasing awareness and reporting of concerns. Following the introduction of the preventative duty in 2024, Acas reported a significant rise in sexual harassment-related enquiries from both employees and employers.
Recent research suggests there is still work for employers to do in terms of meeting their preventative obligations. A 2026 survey of 985 UK HR and compliance professionals by VinciWorks found that one in five employers do not provide managers with specific sexual harassment training, despite managers often being the first point of contact when concerns are raised. The survey also highlighted that many employers had either never carried out a sexual harassment risk assessment or had not reviewed one recently.
As employers prepare for stronger legal obligations, relying on having a sexual harassment policy on the intranet or lying in a drawer will not be enough. Employers should be taking proactive steps now to assess risks, train managers, review reporting mechanisms and ensure concerns are handled appropriately when they arise. They should also be able to demonstrate the practical measures they have taken to prevent sexual harassment and create a workplace culture in which inappropriate behaviour is challenged and addressed. With stronger obligations taking effect from 30 October 2026, employers who wait until the last minute may find themselves on the backfoot.
Who does it protect, and against what?
Sexual harassment can affect anyone, regardless of gender, and the legal protections apply to all employees. Despite recent reforms, sexual harassment remains a significant workplace issue. A Unite survey published in 2025, involving more than 6,000 women working across a range of 19 sectors, found evidence of widespread workplace sexual harassment and highlighted that many incidents continue to go unreported.
The survey highlighted the wide range of behaviours that can amount to sexual harassment. Respondents reported experiences including sexually offensive jokes, unwanted flirting, sexual remarks and gestures, inappropriate touching, and being shown or sent pornographic images by colleagues, managers and third parties. The findings serve as a reminder that sexual harassment can take many forms and is not limited to physical conduct.
The survey also found that, where sexual harassment occurred, it was often not an isolated incident. Almost half of those who had experienced sexual harassment at work reported that it had happened more than twice, while three quarters of respondents had not reported the incidents. Higher levels of reported harassment were identified in sectors including construction, transport, warehousing and logistics, highlighting the importance of employers understanding the specific risks within their own workplaces.
Sexual harassment can have a significant impact on wellbeing, confidence and mental health. It can also affect attendance, performance, career progression and staff retention. For employers, sexual harassment can damage workplace culture, employee engagement and organisational reputation.
How is sexual harassment defined?
The legal definition of sexual harassment is broader than many people realise. Under The Equality Act 2010, sexual harassment means:
“unwanted conduct of a sexual nature, which has the purpose or effect of violating your dignity or creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment.”
The Equality and Human Rights Commission’s (EHRC) Technical Guidance clarifies notes that conduct does not need to be sexually motivated to amount to sexual harassment. It is enough that the conduct is sexual in nature.
Sexual harassment is not limited to physical conduct and can take many forms. Conduct of a sexual nature might include:
- Sexual comments or jokes
- Displaying graphic pictures, posters or photographs
- Suggestive looks, staring or leering
- Propositions and sexual advances
- Making promises in return for sexual favours
- Sexual gestures
- Intrusive questions about a person’s private or sex life or a person discussing their own sex life
- Sexual posts or contact on social media
- Spreading sexual rumours about a person
- Sending sexually explicit emails or text messages
- Unwelcome touching, hugging, massaging or kissing.
What happens if an employer gets this wrong?
An employee cannot bring a standalone claim for breach of the preventative duty in the Employment Tribunal. Instead, where a tribunal finds that sexual harassment has occurred, it may also consider whether the employer failed to comply with its duty to take reasonable steps (and from 30 October 2026, all reasonable steps) to prevent sexual harassment. If the tribunal finds that the duty has been breached, it may increase any compensation awarded by up to 25%.
Employers may also face enforcement action by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC), which has powers to investigate employers and require organisations to take action where it considers employment protections are not being met.
For example, in August 2025, Lidl entered into a legally binding agreement with the EHRC following findings that it had failed to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment of a young female employee. Issues identified included a lack of management awareness of anti-harassment policies and failure to carry out appropriate risk assessments. The case serves as a reminder that employers should be able to demonstrate the practical steps they have taken to comply with their obligations.
What are ”all reasonable steps”?
The current legal duty requires employers to take ”reasonable steps” to prevent sexual harassment. From 30 October 2026, this will change to a duty to take “all reasonable steps”.
While the legislation does not yet provide a definitive checklist of what this means in practice, the change is significant. The addition of a single word, “all”, may appear modest, but it is intended to strengthen the duty. While there is not yet a definitive checklist of what this will require in practice, employers should assume that tribunals and regulators will expect a more thorough and evidence-based approach to prevention. Put simply, employers will need to do more than have a policy and provide one-off training. They should be able to demonstrate that they have assessed risks, taken proactive steps to address them and kept those measures under review.
The position is made slightly more complicated by the fact that the enhanced duty comes into force on 30 October 2026, while the detailed regulations explaining what may constitute “all reasonable steps” are not currently expected until 2027/28. The Government has indicated that further regulations and updated guidance will follow after additional consultation and consideration of responses to its call for evidence on equality law. The EHRC has also confirmed that it is updating its Technical Guidance to reflect the 2026 reforms.
Employers should not treat that uncertainty as a reason to delay action. The direction of travel is already clear: employers are expected to take a proactive approach to preventing sexual harassment and to be able to evidence the steps they have taken to do so.
For now, the most useful guide for employers remains the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s (EHRC) Technical Guidance and accompanying Employer 8-Step Guide both of which place significant emphasis on understanding workplace risks, taking preventative action and regularly reviewing its effectiveness.
The EHRC considers it very important that employers carry out a risk assessment to identify the risk of sexual harassment within their workplace and has indicated that employers are unlikely to be able to comply with the preventative duty without doing so. Employers should also develop an action plan setting out the practical steps they will take to address identified risks, how those steps will be monitored and who will be responsible for implementation.
The EHRC identifies a number of practical measures employers should consider, including:
- Anticipating scenarios when workers may be subject to sexual harassment and taking action to prevent it taking place;
- If sexual harassment has taken place, taking action to stop it from happening again;
- Carrying out a sexual harassment risk assessment;
- Producing an action plan setting out what preventative steps will be taken in response to the risk assessment;
- Appointing a designated lead to take responsibility for the action plan and compliance with the duty;
- Ensure there are effective and well-communicated policies and procedures in place that deal with sexual harassment;
- Adopting a zero tolerance approach to sexual harassment;
- Taking caution with any statements in relation to malicious complaints;
- Ensuring all workers are aware of the anti-harassment policies;
- Evaluating effectiveness of policies, potentially through a record of complaints;
- Nurturing a speak up culture;
- Providing effective training and refreshing this regularly;
- Ensuring agencies have effective policies in place before using agency staff;
- Addressing power imbalances;
- Responding effectively to instances of sexual harassment.
While further regulations and updated guidance are expected, employers should not wait before taking action. Reviewing policies, refreshing training, carrying out risk assessments and considering third-party risks now will put employers in a stronger position to demonstrate compliance when the enhanced duty comes into force.
Where are we now with harassment by third parties?
From 30 October 2026, employers will become liable under the Employment Rights Act 2025 for harassment of employees by third parties where they have failed to take all reasonable steps to prevent it. This represents a significant change and reflects growing recognition that harassment during the course of employment is not always carried out by colleagues or managers.
Third parties can include customers, clients, contractors, suppliers, agency workers, service users, patients, students and members of the public. The new provisions are not limited to sexual harassment and will apply to harassment related to other protected characteristics.
Employers should not wait until October 2026 to consider these risks. The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has for some time encouraged employers to consider third-party harassment as part of their wider approach to preventing workplace harassment and sexual harassment. Employers may therefore wish to refer to the EHRC Technical Guidance, alongside reviewing policies, risk assessments, reporting procedures, training and communications with customers, contractors and other third parties now.
Businesses operating in customer-facing environments, or those with significant interaction with contractors, suppliers or members of the public, should pay particular attention to these changes.
You can read our detailed guide to preparing for third-party harassment obligations here.
What might ”all reasonable steps” look like in different sectors?
What amounts to “all reasonable steps“ will depend on the particular circumstances of the employer. Government fact sheet published on 25 March 2025 confirms that relevant factors may include the specific organisation’s size, sector, working environment, resources and the risks present within the workplace.
There is no one-size-fits-all approach. What is reasonable for a small employer with limited resources may look very different from what is expected of a large organisation operating across multiple sites. Equally, the risks faced by a professional services firm will differ from those encountered in hospitality, retail, healthcare, education or construction.
One theme runs consistently through the EHRC guidance: employers should understand the risks within their own workplace and taking proportionate steps to address them. The EHRC has indicated that employers are unlikely to comply with the preventative duty unless they have considered and assessed the risk of sexual harassment within their organisation. Employers should therefore carry out regular risk assessments and ensure they have a clear action plan for addressing and monitoring identified risks.
There are strong arguments for managing the duty to prevent sexual harassment in the same way as other workplace risks, by identifying areas of potential exposure and implementing practical measures to reduce them.
The EHRC technical guidance tells us that risk factors might include:
- Environments where alcohol is present;
- Social, networking or work-related events;
- Working alone with clients, customers, contractors or other third parties;
- Customer-facing environments;
- Interactions with contractors, suppliers, agency workers, service users or members of the public;
- Significant power imbalances between individuals;
- Failure to respond appropriately to previous reports of sexual harassment;
- Lack of diversity in the workforce, particularly at a senior level; and
- Workplace culture that permits crude or sexist banter or other disrespectful behaviour.
The EHRC’s technical guidance gives practical examples of how those risks may look very different across sectors. In construction, risks may arise from male-dominated workforces, remote sites, lone working and the presence of contractors. In hospitality and retail, employers may need to consider the service of alcohol, frequent customer interaction, young or temporary workforces and late-night working. In healthcare settings, risks may arise from close physical contact, home visits, lone working and interactions with patients and visitors. Transport employers may need to consider remote locations, shift working, public-facing roles and mixed workforces made up of employees, agency workers and contractors. These examples illustrate why employers should focus on the specific risks within their own organisation rather than adopting a one-size-fits-all approach.
Employers operating in higher-risk sectors may also wish to consider any relevant guidance issued by regulators, professional bodies or trade associations alongside the EHRC guidance.
What should employers be doing now?
Employers should be taking practical, proactive steps to identify risks, prevent harassment and demonstrate that they are meeting their legal obligations.
Actions employers should consider include:
- Carry out a sexual harassment risk assessment and review it regularly to identify workplace-specific risks.
- Develop an action plan setting out the measures that will be taken to address identified risks, who is responsible for implementing them and how their effectiveness will be monitored.
- Consult and engage with staff to better understand workplace culture and create a genuine speak-up environment where concerns can be raised safely.
- Ensure visible leadership commitment, for example by appointing a senior leader to oversee implementation and champion respectful workplace behaviours.
- Review and update policies and procedures to ensure expectations are clear, reporting routes are accessible and responsibilities are understood.
- Provide regular training for managers and employees, recognising that managers are often the first point of contact when concerns are raised. Training should be refreshed periodically rather than treated as a one-off exercise.
- Review reporting and investigation processes to ensure concerns are dealt with promptly, fairly and confidentially.
- Take all complaints seriously and ensure appropriate support is provided to those who raise concerns.
- Monitor trends and learn from complaints, informal concerns, surveys and feedback to assess whether preventative measures are working in practice.
- Consider risks arising from third parties, including customers, clients, contractors, suppliers, agency workers, service users and members of the public.
- Communicate a zero-tolerance approach where appropriate, including to third parties and those working with the organisation.
- Identify groups that may be at greater risk and consider whether additional support or preventative measures may be required.
Recent cases demonstrate the importance of responding appropriately when concerns are raised. In KJ v British Council, the Tribunal was highly critical of the employer’s handling of sexual harassment complaints and the support provided to the claimant. The case serves as a reminder that how concerns are investigated and addressed may receive just as much scrutiny as the underlying allegations themselves.
How can Stephens Scown help?
The Stephens Scown Employment team advises employers on all aspects of workplace harassment prevention, including risk assessments, policy reviews, investigations, training and culture change programmes. We are also supporting employers in preparing for the October 2026 reforms, including the move to an all reasonable steps duty and the new obligations relating to third-party harassment.
Our experienced litigators continue to advise both employers and individuals in relation to workplace harassment claims and complex investigations.
Our Workplace Harassment Prevention Package is designed to provide employers with practical resources to help organisations meet their legal obligations and create safer workplaces.