Prevent harassment in the workplace and protect your people with user-friendly, practical employment law eLearning that actually makes a difference.
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Why preventing sexual harassment training is essential
As of 26 October 2024, all employers are legally required to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment at work. The Employment Rights Act extends these duties further, and tribunals can apply an uplift of up to 25% to compensation if employers fail to comply.
Despite these legal obligations, sexual harassment remains a widespread issue in UK workplaces: 30% of workers report experiencing harassment, only 26% feel their employer promotes a zero-tolerance culture, and over 60% of organisations haven’t invested in any training.
‘Tick box’ approaches are no longer enough. Our practical, engaging eLearning course – created by our employment law and digital learning experts – helps you stay compliant, reduce risk, and demonstrate a serious commitment to preventing harassment. Trusted by over 100,000 learners, it builds awareness, strengthens culture and delivers a measurable impact across your organisation.
Sexual harassment prevention training course overview
Increase understanding of what constitutes sexual harassment at work, going beyond the minimum legal requirements, and reinforcing learning through practical, real-world scenarios.
Raise awareness and improve employee experience, helping to reduce risk of claims and limit exposure to a potential 25% increase in compensation for successful cases.
Maintain thorough reporting and an audit trail that evidences training completion.
Empower employees with clear guidance on how to speak up and raise concerns safely.
On-demand workplace harassment training course demo
Watch our on-demand walkthrough of Preventing Sexual Harassment at Work eLearning course.
In just 40 minutes, Charlie McHugh and Rena Christou explain how the course helps build understanding of what amounts to sexual harassment, gives employees clear routes to speak up and uses practical, real-world scenarios to test learning.
They also cover how the training helps minimise liability, avoid a potential 25% uplift in compensation, and provide robust reporting should you ever need to evidence completion.
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Frequently asked questions
How will the Employment Rights Act extend employer sexual harassment duties?
The Employment Rights Act will extend employer sexual harassment duties in the following ways:
- Higher Standard of Prevention: The duty for employers to prevent sexual harassment will be raised from taking “reasonable steps” to taking “all reasonable steps.” This duty will likely come into effect in October 2026 and will require employers to take a more comprehensive and proactive approach to prevention.
- Third-Party Harassment Liability: Employers will be held liable for sexual harassment committed by third parties (e.g., clients, customers, suppliers) unless they can demonstrate they took “all reasonable steps” to prevent it. (Note: This liability for third-party harassment will apply to all types of harassment, not just sexual harassment.)
- Strengthened Whistleblowing Protection: The Act explicitly includes the disclosure of sexual harassment as a qualifying disclosure under whistleblowing legislation, protecting employees who report it from retaliation (such as dismissal or detriments).
- Ban on Confidentiality Clauses: The Act will void provisions in settlement or non-disclosure agreements that prevent workers from making allegations or disclosures about certain types of discrimination and harassment.
Why do I need a risk assessment template for sexual harassment?
A clear, structured risk assessment template helps you meet your legal duties and ensure your approach stands up if challenged. Recent data shows that more than 40% of employers haven’t yet carried out a sexual harassment risk assessment, and 22% of those that have aren’t confident it’s valid. That’s a concern, as a risk assessment is a key part of demonstrating you’ve taken reasonable steps under the duties outlined in the Worker Protection Act.
Sexual harassment claims already attract uncapped compensation, and if you can’t evidence those reasonable steps, tribunals can apply a further 25% uplift. Alongside this, organisations face wider consequences – reputational impact, reduced morale, and loss of employee trust – all against the backdrop of a 39% rise in ACAS calls about sexual harassment.
If you’d like to discuss access to our risk assessment template, feel free to get in touch with us.
How often should sexual harassment training be updated?
Training should be updated and delivered regularly to be considered current and effective.
- Refresher Frequency: Updating training at least every 12 months (if not more frequently) is advised to raise awareness and help protect against employment tribunal claims.
- The “Stale” Training Precedent: The case of Allay (UK) Ltd v Mr S Gehlen demonstrated that providing one-off or infrequent training is insufficient. The tribunal rejected the employer’s defence against a racial harassment claim because the anti-harassment training was deemed “stale” and ineffective, having “faded from people’s memories.”
To rely on the statutory defence of taking “all reasonable steps” to prevent harassment, employers must be able to show that their training and policies are current, effective, and regularly refreshed. Training should be treated as an ongoing process, not a one-off, “tick-box exercise.”
What should my organisation include in its policies to support preventing sexual harassment at work?
Robust, well-communicated policies are a core part of preventing sexual harassment, and tribunals increasingly highlight when organisations rely on written commitments that aren’t actively followed. Your policies should be current, easily accessible, and reinforced in practice, not just filed away.
Make sure your sexual harassment, bullying, and conduct policies clearly explain how individuals can raise concerns, what happens after a report is made and the responsibilities managers hold throughout the process. Policies should cover behaviour connected to work, even when it happens outside normal hours or away from the workplace – including work events, travel, and online interactions.
The Employment Rights Act adds further considerations. Not only will organisations be liable for protecting their employees from third-party harassment, but confidentiality clauses will no longer be enforceable if they try to stop a worker – whether a victim or witness – from reporting harassment or discrimination. This shift is designed to encourage openness and early intervention, while still allowing confidentiality to protect legitimate commercial or intellectual property interests.
With these changes on the horizon, reviewing your policies and how they’re communicated is an important step in strengthening your approach to preventing sexual harassment and demonstrating that concerns will be handled properly. Get in touch with us to find out how we can help.
