Changes to employer's duty to prevent sexual harassment - technical guidance expected in September 2024
The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has confirmed that it intends to update its technical guidance to reflect the changes that will be introduced by the Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Act 2023.
What are the changes?
The Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Act 2023 is due to come into force on 26 October 2024. The Act will amend the Equality Act 2010 to introduce a duty for all employers to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment of their employees in the course of their employment. If an employment tribunal upholds a claim of sexual harassment, they will be able to uplift the compensation awarded to the claimant by 25% if they find that the employer failed to take reasonable steps to prevent the sexual harassment.
Best practice
Employers will need to plan ahead to consider how they will comply with the new duty once it is implemented. To assist, the EHRC has confirmed that it will update its technical guidance. The updated guidance is expected to be published in September 2024, a month before the changes come into force. Consultation is expected to take place this summer on the updated technical guidance and we will continue to report on developments.