Equality and Harassment Prevention

Equality and harassment prevention means treating people fairly and making sure no one at work is harassed because of who they are. Under the Equality Act 2010, employers must not harass employees or job applicants, and since 26 October 2024 they have also had a positive legal duty to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment of their employees. From 30 October 2026 that duty was strengthened to "all reasonable steps".

What the Equality Act 2010 Protects

Section 4 of the Equality Act 2010 lists nine protected characteristics:

• age
• disability
• gender reassignment
• marriage and civil partnership
• pregnancy and maternity
• race
• religion or belief
• sex
• sexual orientation

The provisions covered in this article apply in England, Wales and Scotland.

What Counts as Harassment

Section 26 of the Act describes three types of harassment:

• unwanted conduct related to a relevant protected characteristic that has the purpose or effect of violating someone's dignity, or creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for them
• unwanted conduct of a sexual nature with that purpose or effect
• treating someone less favourably because they rejected or submitted to sexual conduct, or conduct related to sex or gender reassignment

For harassment, the relevant protected characteristics are age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation. When deciding whether conduct had that effect, a tribunal must consider the perception of the person affected, the other circumstances and whether it is reasonable for the conduct to have that effect. Intent is not required.

What Employers Are Expected to Do

Do not harass, and prevent harassment. Section 40 says an employer must not harass an employee or a job applicant. Under section 109, anything an employee does in the course of their employment is treated as also done by the employer, whether or not the employer knew about it or approved. The employer has a defence if it can show it took all reasonable steps to prevent it.

The preventative duty on sexual harassment. Section 40A was inserted by the Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Act 2023 and came into force on 26 October 2024. It requires employers to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment of their employees in the course of their employment. The Employment Rights Act 2025 amended this to "all reasonable steps" from 30 October 2026. This is a proactive duty: employers should act before any complaint is made.

How the duty is enforced. A breach of section 40A can be enforced by the Equality and Human Rights Commission. Where an employment tribunal upholds a sexual harassment claim and finds that the employer also breached the preventative duty, it can increase compensation by up to 25%.

Third parties. From 30 October 2026, the Employment Rights Act 2025 also inserted a rule that an employer must not permit a third party, such as a customer or client, to harass an employee. An employer permits it if the harassment happens in the course of the employee's work and the employer failed to take all reasonable steps to prevent it.

Who the Training Is For

Everyone needs to understand what harassment is and how to raise a concern, from new starters to senior leaders. Managers need extra training because they set the tone, handle complaints and are often the first people told. HR teams and anyone who investigates complaints need more detailed training again.

What Good Training Covers

• The protected characteristics and the different forms of discrimination and harassment.
• What sexual harassment looks like, including in person, online and at work social events.
• The employer's preventative duty and what reasonable steps can look like.
• How to raise a concern, and what happens next.
• For managers: how to respond to a complaint, avoid victimisation and keep records.
• Being an active bystander: safe ways to step in or report what you see.

Common Mistakes

• Waiting for a complaint before taking any preventative action.
• Treating a one-off training session as all reasonable steps.
• Having a policy that staff have never read or cannot find.
• Dismissing behaviour as "banter".
• Ignoring harassment by customers, clients or other third parties.
• Not reviewing what happened after a complaint to stop it happening again.

Building a Respectful Workplace

Training is one part of prevention. Others include a clear policy that names sexual harassment, more than one way to report, visible support from leaders, risk assessment of situations where harassment is more likely, and acting consistently when concerns are raised. Keeping a record of the steps you take also helps show what you have done to meet the duty.

Frequently Asked Questions

When Did the Duty to Prevent Sexual Harassment Start?

The duty in section 40A of the Equality Act 2010 came into force on 26 October 2024. From 30 October 2026 it requires employers to take all reasonable steps.

Is an Employer Liable for Harassment by Its Staff?

Usually, yes. Under section 109, acts done by an employee in the course of their employment are treated as done by the employer, unless the employer shows it took all reasonable steps to prevent them.

Does Harassment Have to Be Intentional?

No. Harassment covers conduct that has the purpose or the effect of violating someone's dignity or creating a hostile environment.

Can Employers Be Responsible for Harassment by Customers?

From 30 October 2026, an employer must not permit a third party to harass an employee, and is treated as permitting it if it failed to take all reasonable steps to prevent it.

Training works best when it is short, relevant to the job and refreshed when things change. If you are planning compliance training for a team, you can book a call to talk it through, or see our courses.