On 26th October, the Worker Protection Act will introduce a new duty on employers to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment. It will no longer be enough simply to respond to issues; employers must now be proactive in trying to stop this behaviour from happening in the first place. Organisations should now be updating policies, communicating a message of zero-tolerance, improving reporting systems and training managers and team members in how to recognise and respond to sexual harassment.
But what about people outside your organisation?
Are you responsible for the behaviour of the independent contractor who spends a week on your site and makes inappropriate comments to your team members?
What about the client who makes unwanted physical advances during a meeting at a restaurant? What about the senior person from another organisation who behaves inappropriately towards your team member in a meeting?
Is your organisation really responsible for the behaviour of these people in these situations?
The answer according to the Equality and Human Rights Commission guidance is yes. While the original proposal that employers should be legally liable for third party harassment did not become part of the new law, the EHRC guidance states that part of the employer’s new duty is to take reasonable steps to prevent harassment by third parties.
So what steps could your organisation take to prevent sexual harassment by third parties?
· Every organisation is different and should assess the risks in their own context. Try and identify the key situations in which harassment could happen and who might be at risk. For example, do you have external people visiting your site? Do your people attend events or do they entertain clients?
· Communicate your expectations to third parties. Share your policy with your contractors and ask them to sign up. Make it clear to third parties that you take a zero-tolerance approach to sexual harassment by anyone and will support your people if they are affected.
· Set up a system for reporting incidents involving third parties and communicate this to your teams. Make sure people know who to speak to and how. They should understand that you support their right to be free of harassment in any work context.
· Log incidents, keep them under review and introduce a system for escalation. For example, is there a pattern of poor behaviour from a particular external company or individual which needs to be raised with that company’s management? Team members may be nervous to complain about a client or person perceived to be more powerful than them, so agree who in your organisation will raise these concerns with external organisations and what the consequences might be.
· Help everyone to understand that sexually harassing behaviour is not acceptable in any workplace context and that it is not “part of the territory” to tolerate poor behaviour when dealing with third parties. Download our self-assessment checklist to help you gauge your organisation’s readiness for the new legislation
And talk to us if you would like some support turning the guidance into meaningful actions which will really make a difference, call us for a confidential chat on 01903 732 782 , info@focalpointtraining.com or contact us via the website