Sexual harassment at work is unwanted conduct of a sexual nature that violates someone’s dignity or creates a hostile environment. Since 26 October 2024, UK employers have had a legal duty to take reasonable steps to prevent it. From 30 October 2026, the Employment Rights Act 2025 raises that to all reasonable steps and adds liability for third-party harassment.
This guide explains what the law says, what has changed, and our interpretation of what ‘all reasonable steps’ look like in practice (at the time of publication, official guidance of what constitutes ‘all reasonable steps’ hasn’t yet been published). It’s written for HR teams and managers who need to act if or when sexual harassment at work occurs, not just understand their legal obligations.
The right HR software makes that easier to prove: when policies, training records and case notes sit in one place, you can show the steps you took, not just say you took them.
In this article:
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What does the law require employers to do about sexual harassment?
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What do 'all reasonable steps' to prevent sexual harassment look like?
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How do you build a culture where people feel safe to speak up?
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Resources for employers: preventing sexual harassment at work
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Give every employee the same clear standard with Ciphr eLearning
- Frequently asked questions
What is sexual harassment at work?
Section 26 of the Equality Act 2010 defines sexual harassment at work as unwanted conduct of a sexual nature that has the purpose or effect of violating someone’s dignity. It also covers conduct that creates an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for them.
Two points are key for employers to understand. The test is about effect as well as intent, so “it was only a joke” is not a defence. And the conduct doesn’t need to be aimed at the person who complains. Examples of sexual harassment at work include:
- Sexual comments or jokes, including about someone’s appearance or private life
- Unwanted touching, hugging or brushing past someone
- Sharing sexual images, messages or memes, including in group chats
- Repeated requests for dates or suggestive questions after someone has said no
- Staring, leering or sexual gestures
It can happen anywhere: in the office, on a shift, at a client site, at the Christmas party or online. Wherever it happens, if it’s in the course of employment, it’s your concern as an employer, HR professional, or line manager.
What does the law require employers to do about sexual harassment?
The law requires employers to take steps to prevent sexual harassment before it happens, not just respond to complaints. That preventative duty sits in section 40A of the Equality Act 2010 and it has been strengthened twice in two years.
Equality Act 2010
The Equality Act 2010 made sexual harassment unlawful, and made employers liable for harassment by their employees. But there was no standalone duty to prevent it. Employers mostly reacted after incidents took place.
Worker Protection Act 2023: reasonable steps
The Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Act 2023 changed that. Since 26 October 2024, employers have had a positive duty to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment of their employees. Tribunals can increase compensation by up to 25% where an employer breached the duty. The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) can also enforce it, even if no harassment has happened.
Employment Rights Act 2025: all reasonable steps
From 30 October 2026, section 20 of the Employment Rights Act 2025 changes the duty from “reasonable steps” to “all reasonable steps”. In practice, employers will need to show there was nothing further they could reasonably have done to prevent sexual harassment occurring at work. It’s a higher bar, and a gap you knew about but didn’t close will be hard to defend. At the time of publication, official guidance about what constitutes ‘all reasonable steps’ hasn’t yet been published.
Our Employment Rights Act 2025 guide covers the wider reforms introduced by the ERA.
How UK law has changed
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Change |
In force |
What it means for employers |
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Duty to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment (Worker Protection Act 2023) |
26 October 2024 |
Employers must act in advance to prevent sexual harassment of employees. This continues. |
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Up to 25% compensation uplift and EHRC enforcement (s.124A Equality Act 2010) |
26 October 2024 |
Tribunals can add up to 25% to sexual harassment compensation if you have breached the duty. The EHRC can act without an incident. Both continue under the new duty effective from October 2026. |
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Reporting sexual harassment becomes a protected disclosure (s.23) |
6 April 2026 |
A worker who discloses that sexual harassment has occurred, is occurring or is likely to occur has whistleblowing protection. |
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Tribunal time limit extended from 3 to 6 months (SI 2026/954) |
1 October 2026 |
Most claims where the relevant date is on or after 1 October 2026 can be brought within 6 months. Claims can arrive later than before. |
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Duty becomes all reasonable steps (s.20) |
30 October 2026 |
You must be able to show there was nothing further you could reasonably have done to prevent sexual harassment. |
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Liability for third-party harassment (s.21) |
30 October 2026 |
You must not permit customers, clients, contractors or members of the public to harass your employees. A first incident can create liability. |
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Regulations setting out reasonable steps (s.22) |
Power from 30 October 2026; regulations not before 2027 |
Regulations may specify steps such as risk assessments, published policies, reporting and complaint handling. Expected after consultation. |
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Confidentiality clauses (non-disclosure agreements, or NDAs) that stop workers reporting harassment made void |
Expected 2027 |
Coming next, so review how you use NDAs now. |
The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has not yet published updated guidance for the Employment Rights Act 2025. Until it does, its existing technical guidance and eight-step guide remain the practical standard.
What do ‘all reasonable steps’ to prevent sexual harassment look like?
‘All reasonable steps’ means having a planned, joined-up approach that you can evidence, not a policy on the intranet. At the time of publication, official guidance about what constitutes ‘all reasonable steps’ hasn’t yet been published. While we await that information, refer to EHRC’s eight-step guide and similar advice from Acas.
1. Develop an effective anti-harassment policy
Write a sexual harassment policy that defines sexual harassment with examples, explains how to report incidents, and says what happens next. Cover third parties and online behaviour.
2. Engage your staff
Ask people what’s happening. Use one-to-ones, anonymous surveys and exit interviews to find problems before they turn into complaints.
3. Assess and reduce risk in your workplace
Look at where harassment is more likely: among lone workers and during night shifts; at events where alcohol is served; where there are power imbalances; and in customer-facing roles. Record the risks and the controls you put in place. Our guide to sexual harassment risk assessment shows you how.
4. Make reporting easy, including anonymous reporting
Employees and workers need a clearly signposted channel they trust, with an anonymous report option. Consider online tools that let people report anonymously or include their personal details if they choose. Explain what happens after a report, including timescales.
Remember that reports of sexual harassment are now protected disclosures, so nobody should suffer for speaking up. Speak up culture training helps create an environment in which people feel able to raise concerns, and helps managers respond more effectively to incidents.
5. Train workers, managers and senior staff
Everyone in your organisation should know what sexual harassment looks like, how to report it and what to do if they see it. Managers also need to know how to respond to a disclosure. eLearning courses ensure everyone completes training to the same standard, with a record created in your LMS or integrated HR and LMS software.
Useful themes include the fundamentals of sexual harassment and its impact, supporting disclosures of sexual violence, and being an active bystander. For more on choosing the right eLearning courses, read our guide to sexual harassment prevention training.
6. Handle complaints properly
Investigate thoroughly, fairly and quickly. Make sure your organisation has an invetigation process in place that is documented and followed, to ensure consistency. Keep the person who reported the incident updated, signpost support and take steps to remove any immediate risk. Managers will need HR’s guidance to protect and support the employee’s wellbeing. Handling complaints properly should also involve thorough documentation of the complaint, the process followed to handled it, and the support offered.
7. Deal with harassment by third parties
From 30 October 2026, your organisation can be liable if a customer, client, contractor or member of the public harasses an employee. That applies where you didn’t take all reasonable steps to prevent it. Signage, contract terms, a clear escalation route and staff training all help. Read our guide to third-party harassment.
8. Monitor and evaluate
Track reports, outcomes, training completion and survey results. Review what’s working at least once a year and after any incident. This record is your evidence that you took all reasonable steps. The EHRC’s checklist and action plan is a good place to start.
A 20-minute course updated for the 30 October 2026 duty, including a third-party harassment scenario.
How do you build a culture where people feel safe to speak up?
You build it by making respect and inclusion visible in everyday behaviour, not just in policy. Policies and training set the standard. Culture decides whether people believe it.
If your culture recognises and respects diversity and inclusion, you’ll be better placed to spot and deal with inappropriate behaviour early. Mentoring schemes, open conversations and diversity in the workplace training all help. That training should bring people together, helping them see the benefits of a workplace where everyone is heard and valued.
Leaders set the tone. If senior people laugh off “banter” or protect high performers, staff notice. Words are easy. Action is what people remember.
What happens if you get it wrong?
If you fail to take all reasonable steps, you face higher tribunal awards, regulatory action and real harm to your people. The financial and legal risks include:
- Compensation uplift. Tribunals can increase sexual harassment compensation by up to 25% where you breached the preventative duty
- EHRC enforcement. The EHRC can investigate and take action even if no one has been harassed
- Longer exposure. With a six-month time limit for most claims, people have more time to bring a tribunal claim, and employers have to be able to evidence things as they stood for a longer period
- Third-party claims. From 30 October 2026, harassment by any third parties – such as customers clients, or suppliers – can lead to claims against you
The people cost is greater. Office for National Statistics data for the year ending March 2025 shows that 22.5% of people who experienced in-person sexual harassment in the past year experienced it at work. In a July 2025 TUC Cymru survey of 2,000 workers in Wales, 46% had experienced workplace sexual harassment. A third (36%) had received no training on recognising or reporting it.
Harassment that goes unreported doesn’t go away. It shows up as sickness absence, resignations and a team that stops trusting its managers.
What about universities and colleges?
Universities and colleges are employers too, so the duty to take all reasonable steps covers their staff in the same way. For students in England, OfS condition E6 has applied since 1 August 2025. It sets requirements on information, training, reporting, NDAs and staff and student relationships.
The scale of under-reporting is clear. In the OfS 2025 sexual misconduct survey, only 13.2% of students who were sexually harassed made a formal report. Read our guide to OfS condition E6 for what higher education providers need to do.
Resources for employers: preventing sexual harassment at work
- EHRC 8-step guide to preventing sexual harassment at work
- EHRC’s sexual harassment and harassment at work: technical guidance
- EHRC checklist and action plan for employers
- Acas: steps for employers to prevent sexual harassment
- CIPD’s guidance on steps employers can take
- Webinar: Sexual harassment and the Worker Protection Act: are you compliant? (broadcast February 2025: some references to legal obligations may be out of date)
- Webinar: How to create a culture where it’s safe to speak up (broadcast April 2024: some references to legal obligations may be out of date)
- Ciphr eLearning courses:
If you or someone you know needs support after sexual harassment or assault, contact Rape Crisis England & Wales (for people aged 16+), call 111, or use the services listed by the NHS, including sexual assault referral centres (SARCs). The Survivors’ Network also offers support.
Give every employee the same clear standard with Ciphr eLearning
Training is one of the clearest ways to show you’ve taken all reasonable steps. Ciphr’s sexual harassment eLearning course takes around 20 minutes. It covers the 30 October 2026 change, including a third-party harassment scenario.
Ciphr eLearning has been delivering training for more than 20 years, to over two million people.
FAQs: sexual harassment at work
No law makes training mandatory for every employer. But from 30 October 2026, employers must take all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment. At the time of publication, we are waiting official confirmation of what constitutes ‘all reasonable steps’. In the meantime, the EHRC lists training as one of its eight steps, so it is hard to show you met the duty without it.
‘All reasonable steps’ means doing everything you reasonably could, so that nothing further could have been done. The EHRC eight-step guide is the practical standard: policy, staff engagement, risk assessment, reporting routes, training, complaint handling, third-party measures and monitoring. More specific guidance is expected, via statutory regulations, in 2027 or 2028.
From 30 October 2026, yes, if the harassment happens in the course of employment and you did not take all reasonable steps to prevent it. This covers customers, clients, contractors and members of the public, and a first incident can create liability.
The duty to take all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment, and liability for third-party harassment, apply from 30 October 2026. Whistleblowing protection for reporting sexual harassment has applied since 6 April 2026.
The Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Act 2023 created a duty to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment of employees. It applied from 26 October 2024. It also lets tribunals increase compensation by up to 25% where the duty is breached.
Under section 26 of the Equality Act 2010, sexual harassment is unwanted conduct of a sexual nature that violates someone’s dignity. It also covers conduct that creates an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for them.
This article was first published in October 2024. It was updated for freshness, clarity and accuracy in October 2026.
This article is not legal advice. If you need legal advice, consult a qualified employment law expert.