New harassment rules cover what guests do to your team
Employers must now take 'all reasonable steps', and that includes customers, delivery drivers and entertainers.
The legal duty on employers to prevent sexual harassment has been tightened, The Morning Advertiser reports. It used to be 'reasonable steps'. It is now 'all reasonable steps'. Employers also must not permit third parties to harass staff.
Who counts as a third party: customers, delivery drivers, musicians and other entertainers, and contractors. In other words, the people your team deals with on a Saturday night.
What it covers: harassment linked to age, gender reassignment, disability, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation, under the Equality Act. If it goes wrong, a tribunal can hear the case.
Why the wording matters: employment law firm Citation says a tribunal will judge 'all reasonable steps' very differently. You need to show you looked at every option, not just what you already had.
What Citation says employers should do - Review harassment risk assessments. - Extend policies and training to cover customers and other third parties. - Train staff to report incidents involving guests, and give managers a clear process.
On your shift: this lands on you first. Find out who you report a guest incident to. Make sure your team knows too. Then back them up when they raise it.
Source: The Morning Advertiser (opens in a new tab)
- employment-law
- harassment
- compliance
- third-party
- training