From the 26th of October 2024, the Workers Protection Act 2023 comes into effect, introducing a new legal obligation for employers to take “reasonable steps” to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace — regardless of the perpetrator.
The major shift from the legislation that has been in place for the past 40 years is that this Act places a preventative duty on employers. It is no longer enough to respond to incidents of sexual harassment; employers now have a legal responsibility to proactively prevent it from happening.
The 2022 Gender Equality in the Workplace report by Randstad found that 45% of women working in construction felt their careers had been negatively affected by sexual harassment. Sadly, the construction industry has been slow to address this issue. As a result, the Coalition is urging all employers to take immediate and practical steps to protect their employees and create safer, more inclusive work environments.
Practical steps for employers:
- Review and update policies: Ensure a comprehensive sexual harassment policy is in place (or revise existing ones) and communicate it effectively to all employees.
- Provide training: Offer training to all staff to help them recognise sexual harassment and inappropriate behaviour, understand workplace expectations, and take action to prevent such behaviour.
- Clarify reporting procedures: Make sure employees are fully aware of how to report incidents and ensure that people managers are trained to handle complaints appropriately.
- Foster an inclusive culture: Evaluate your organisational culture and ensure senior leaders lead by example, uphold company values, and set clear expectations about acceptable workplace behaviour.
Coalition members have committed to supporting a healthy and collaborative workplace environment via our ‘Built On Better’ pledge. Please get in touch here if you want to find out how your organisation can get involved.
