The new mandatory duty to take “reasonable steps” to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace will come into force in October, which means the countdown is on for employers.
Come 26 October, you have either taken the reasonable steps required or you have not, and if you have not, you are immediately exposed. Acting now, or, as a minimum, being seen to think now about whether you need to act, is a likely prerequisite of compliance with this new duty.
Identify the Risks
Our recommended first step for employers is to carry out a risk assessment. You cannot know what constitutes reasonable steps to head off a risk unless you know its source and extent. Any attempt to determine the steps your business should take under this new law must, therefore, realistically begin with an assessment of where you start from in that respect. Completed in sufficient detail, this will form the cornerstone of your later efforts, and so go a long way towards justifying the reasonableness of the steps you choose to take and not to take.
Train Your Staff
Almost certainly, mitigating the risks you identify will involve some training for your staff. Without some visible training of your staff, there is next to no chance of your being found to
have complied with the new statutory duties. We recommend that any training is sufficiently tailored to take into account the particular risks of your business, as identified in your risk assessment, including relevant examples.
You may also wish to consider whether you should have training tailored to different groups within your workforce to address the different risks that they pose. This could comprise, for
example, some training for the general population, some for managers who may receive complaints and some for more senior staff who may be required to deal with and rule upon them, and to
decide on appropriate consequences.
Given that the risk profile of each business will be unique to its particular circumstances, there will be no one-size-fits-all when it comes to the training required. To help you consider
the options, we have put together a menu. View the menu using the "Read PDF" button.
