Harassment law reform under the Employment Rights Act 2025: what employers need to know

The Employment Rights Act 2025 ("ERA 2025") introduces sweeping reforms to workers’ rights in relation to harassment and discrimination in the workplace. The ERA 2025 significantly enhances protections for workers and strengthens employers’ duties to prevent such conduct, with key provisions coming into force from October 2026. In this article, we summarise the key changes and set out practical steps employers can take now to ensure they are ready when the new law takes effect.

1. What is changing in October 2026? 

The strengthened preventative duty: "all reasonable steps"

Since October 2024, employers have been subject to a proactive duty to take "reasonable steps" to prevent sexual harassment of their employees, with sanctions being (i) a compensation uplift of up to 25% for non-compliance where a harassment claim succeeds and/or (ii) enforcement action by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC).

From 30 October 2026, the ERA 2025 amends this duty to “take all reasonable steps” to prevent sexual harassment, mirroring the existing statutory defence under section 109(4) of the Equality Act 2010. This raises the bar significantly - to avoid being in breach of the duty, employers will need to be able to show that there were no further steps that it could reasonably have taken to prevent such harassment.

The ERA 2025 provides for future regulations to specify what steps employers must take to comply with the new duty, although these regulations are not expected until 2027 i.e. after the new rules are in force. In practice, however, these are likely to formalise what is already set out in the EHRC’s existing technical guidance (see here), including having clear and up-to-date policies, providing regular harassment training, and carrying out proactive risk assessments, as well as steps relating to reporting mechanisms and robust complaint handling procedures.

Third-party harassment 

From 30 October 2026, employers will be liable for the harassment of their employees by third parties in the course of employment (a similar regime having been repealed in 2013). Liability will arise where an employer fails to take all reasonable steps to prevent such harassment. Crucially, this is not limited to sexual harassment - it extends to harassment related to any relevant protected characteristic under the Equality Act 2010.

The new provisions are markedly more onerous than their predecessor. Liability can now be triggered by a single incident, and there is no requirement for the employer to have had prior knowledge of the harassment. This is, of course, a high bar and may be difficult to meet in practice. Employers clearly have much less control over the actions of third parties than they do over their own workforce. The government has indicated that the standard expected of employers in preventing third-party harassment will be lower than that which applies to preventing harassment by their own workforce; however, we will need to wait and see how the new provisions are applied by tribunals. 

The definition of "third party" is deliberately broad, encompassing customers, clients, suppliers, and members of the public. The practical impact will therefore vary by sector. Employers with high levels of client or customer interaction (such as those in hospitality, retail, construction and professional services) are likely to face greater exposure and will need to take more proactive steps to comply. Balancing harassment prevention with freedom of expression will require careful navigation. Employers in these sectors may need to have more frank (and potentially uncomfortable) conversations with customers and clients about working environments, given that ultimate liability for a failure to act rests with the employer.

2. Other relevant changes under the ERA 2025

The October 2026 changes form part of a broader suite of reforms to harassment and discrimination law aimed at strengthening worker protections. In addition to the measures set out above, employers should also be aware of the following developments:

• Restrictions on non-disclosure agreements (“NDAs”): Whilst not expected to come into effect until 2027, the ERA 2025 will render void any confidentiality provision in an agreement between an employer and a worker to the extent that it prevents workers from speaking up about "relevant harassment or discrimination", or about how their employer responded to it. This is not a blanket ban – NDAs will remain valid where they serve a legitimate purpose (such as protecting commercially sensitive information) – but the scope of this restriction is significant. The government is currently consulting on limited carve-outs for “excepted agreements” (circumstances where an NDA can still be valid even in harassment or discrimination cases, where strict conditions are met).
   
• Sexual harassment and whistleblowing: Since 6 April 2026, disclosures relating to sexual harassment are expressly included as a qualifying disclosure for whistleblowing purposes. While such disclosures might previously have fallen within the scope of protected disclosures on other grounds, the legislative amendment removes any ambiguity and provides explicit statutory protections for those raising concerns. This reform is likely to encourage claimants to frame harassment complaints as protected disclosures, particularly where complaints are followed by dismissal or other alleged adverse treatment. 

For our more detailed analysis on these changes, please see our article here.

3. What should employers be doing now?

The preventative duty to take "reasonable steps" to prevent sexual harassment has been in force since October 2024 and many employers will already have reviewed their policies and practices in response. However, employers should take steps now to prepare for the more demanding "all reasonable steps" threshold and the reintroduction of third-party harassment liability. The following will help ensure your organisation is ready when the new provisions come into force on 30 October 2026:

• Review and update anti-harassment policies: Ensure policies clearly define what constitutes sexual harassment, harassment related to any relevant protected characteristic, and third-party harassment. Policies should expressly address how employees can report concerns, how complaints will be investigated and resolved, and the consequences for those found to have engaged in harassment. Policies should be easily accessible to all staff, communicated regularly and proactively (not buried on the intranet), and reviewed on a regular basis.
   
• Review and update whistleblowing policies: To the extent this has not been done already, ensure whistleblowing policies explicitly identify sexual harassment as a qualifying disclosure and make clear that anyone raising such a concern is protected from detriment or dismissal. Signpost relevant reporting channels, external hotlines, and internal complaint-handling procedures so that workers know exactly where to go and how to raise a concern.
   
• Promote a “speak up” culture: Visible commitment from senior leadership is essential. Ensure the board and senior management set the tone by communicating that harassment and discrimination will not be tolerated and by actively encouraging staff to raise concerns early.
   
• Invest in targeted training: Deliver regular, meaningful training for all staff on what constitutes harassment, how to report it, and what to do if they witness it. Employees who come into regular contact with customers, clients or other third parties should receive specific training on how to recognise, report and respond to third-party harassment. Training should be tailored to an organisation’s specific risk profile and particular roles - e.g. managers and senior leaders will carry a higher level of accountability and will need more in-depth, frequent training on how to handle concerns, intervene when they witness inappropriate behaviour, conduct investigations and support impacted employees. Refresh training regularly to maintain awareness – a one-off session is unlikely to satisfy the “all reasonable steps” threshold.
   
• Update harassment risk assessments: Identify the specific risk factors in your organisation in respect of potential third-party harassment – for example, client/customer-facing roles, work social events, lone working, roles involving power imbalances, or the use of temporary or freelance staff. In addition to risk assessments in place for sexual harassment risks, consider conducting risk assessments for specific placements or customer interactions where employees may be at heightened risk of third-party harassment. Document each identified risk, the steps taken to mitigate or manage it, and who is responsible for implementation. This record will be important to demonstrate compliance with the enhanced duty.
   
• Review commercial contracts: Consider incorporating anti-harassment obligations into contracts with clients, customers and suppliers - for example, requiring counterparties to comply with your harassment policies when interacting with your staff and reserving the right to exclude individuals who engage in harassing conduct. Where appropriate, seek warranties from counterparties that they will comply with relevant equality and anti-harassment legislation, and consider including indemnities to cover losses arising from harassment of your staff by the counterparty’s personnel. Ensure your internal reporting channels are equipped to handle complaints involving third parties and that staff know how to escalate such incidents.
   
• Maintain thorough records: Document risk assessments, policy reviews, training attendance, and incident reports and outcomes. Comprehensive records will help demonstrate that "all reasonable steps" were taken.
   
• Monitor effectiveness: Track the impact of preventative measures through staff surveys, analysis of complaints data and exit interviews. Engage employee diversity and inclusion groups/networks in assessing risks and identifying gaps. Report findings to the board/senior leadership to ensure continued senior level engagement and accountability. 

For more information, please contact one of your usual CMS contacts or a member of our Employment team.