Industry experts warn employers must move beyond tick-box exercises to prevent workplace harassment

Industry experts warn employers must move beyond tick-box exercises to prevent workplace harassment

The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) today published new commissioned research on harassment in the workplace. The rapid evidence review conducted by the Open Innovation Team (OIT) shows how organisations can prevent problematic behaviours, fulfilling the legal obligations introduced by the Worker Protection Act.

The research highlights the importance of reporting mechanisms but warns that organisations should not rely on the number of harassment reports to determine if they have a problem. Low harassment reporting rates may indicate a workplace in which employees feel unable to report, rather than the absence of harassment.

The study also suggests that when employers are purely motivated by reputation management, policies often involve ineffective ‘box-ticking’ interventions which, in isolation, fail to prevent harassment or protect their employees.

To be effective, interventions need to be:

The research found that training needs to target underlying causes of harassment and be tailored to the organisation. Other interventions may include the introduction of clear and accessible reporting systems which encourage victims to come forward.  Interventions should be combined with an overarching effective policy, providing everyone in the organisation with a good understanding of expected behaviours and reporting procedures and timelines. 

The equality regulator has provided a summary of the research which explains what effective leadership training to tackle harassment looks like. This research summary can be used as a roadmap to help employers prevent harassment in the workplace. Practical insights are given to help employers to address harassment at the root and understand what makes for a healthy workplace. The EHRC takes account of the evidence on what works in improving workplace culture in its compliance and enforcement work with employers.

Since 2024 organisations have a greater responsibility to prevent and address workplace harassment. The Worker Protection (Amendment of the Equality Act 2010) Act, which came into force in October 2024, placed a new legal duty on employers to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment of their workers.

Middle managers were found to be hugely influential on a workplace’s culture through the good behaviour they model or the negative behaviour they tolerate. There is evidence that supervisory relationships can have an impact on an individual's susceptibility to harassment and discrimination, as well as more general experiences of injustice in the workplace.

Reporting systems should be clear, accessible and encourage victims to come forward. Organisations should offer multiple ways to report incidences of harassment, including anonymous reporting, reporting via an external party and digital reporting options. 

Employers are advised that employees may be more motivated to comply when the case for change is supported by organisational data. The industry experts interviewed suggested that employee climate surveys and internal focus groups, combined with metrics such as staff turnover and progression, can be useful in identifying issues. 

The research findings have been informed by a review of existing literature including academic publications, non-academic publications and government reports as well as interviews with specialist academics and industry experts.