Preventing Workplace Bullying and Harassment

Q: What does the law require to prevent sexual harassment?

The Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Act 2023 introduced a duty on UK employers to take steps to prevent sexual harassment of their workers, and the Employment Rights Act 2025 raised it to all reasonable steps. The law does not list the steps, so the EHRC guidance is the reference point. In practice that usually means a risk assessment, a clear policy, training, reporting routes that people trust, prompt action on reports and regular review. Tribunals can uplift compensation for successful sexual harassment claims by up to 25% where the duty has not been met, and policies alone are not sufficient.

Bullying and Harassment in Brief

Written policy that defines bullying and harassment with examples
Confidential reporting routes that workers trust
All reasonable steps to prevent harassment, including by customers and the public

Bullying and Harassment at Work

Bullying and harassment at work cover a spectrum of behaviours that undermine, threaten or humiliate someone through how they are treated. Harassment has a specific legal meaning in UK law where it relates to a protected characteristic. Bullying is a broader term covering unwanted behaviour that damages the working relationship, whether or not a protected characteristic is involved.

Both cause real harm to the people affected and to the wider team. They also expose the organisation to legal claims, lost productivity, higher turnover and reputational damage. Prevention and early response are much better than trying to deal with things after they have escalated.

The Legal Framework for Bullying and Harassment at Work

In the UK, the main legal framework is the Equality Act 2010, which makes harassment related to a protected characteristic unlawful. Harassment is defined as unwanted conduct that has the purpose or effect of violating someone's dignity or creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment.

The Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Act 2023 introduced a preventive duty on employers to take steps to prevent sexual harassment of their workers, and the Employment Rights Act 2025 raised it to all reasonable steps. Employment tribunals can uplift compensation for successful sexual harassment claims by up to 25% where the duty has not been met.

The 2025 Act also makes employers responsible when their staff are harassed by third parties such as customers, clients, suppliers and members of the public, unless the employer took all reasonable steps to prevent it. This goes beyond sexual harassment to harassment related to other protected characteristics. Both changes apply from 30 October 2026.

The law does not spell out what all reasonable steps means. Guidance from the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) is the usual reference point, and what is reasonable depends on the organisation, the work it does and the situations its staff face. Reporting sexual harassment is also protected under whistleblowing law.

The Protection from Harassment Act 1997 provides separate protection against a course of conduct amounting to harassment, with both criminal and civil remedies. The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 also plays a role where bullying causes psychological or physical harm. Other jurisdictions have their own frameworks with different specifics.

Bullying that is not tied to a protected characteristic is not directly unlawful as harassment under the Equality Act, but can still give rise to claims for constructive dismissal, personal injury or breach of contract, and can breach the implied duty of trust and confidence.

Preventing Bullying and Harassment at Work

Prevention depends on a combination of clear standards, visible leadership and active intervention:

A clear anti-bullying and harassment policy setting out prohibited behaviour, the standards expected, how harassment by third parties is handled, the process for raising concerns and the consequences of breach.
Training for all staff on what counts as bullying and harassment, and additional training for managers on how to prevent, recognise and respond to it.
Leadership behaviour - senior leaders modelling the standards they expect, calling out unacceptable behaviour, and not tolerating it from high performers.
Risk assessment by role and location, covering contact with customers, clients, suppliers and the public as well as risks within the team (isolated working, late shifts, power imbalances).
Conduct standards for third parties set through terms of business, contracts and notices, with the right to refuse or end service where they are breached, and staff able to step away from a situation without penalty.
Clear routes for raising concerns, including confidential options and external contacts where internal routes would be inappropriate.
Monitoring - patterns in grievance data, exit interviews and engagement surveys can reveal problems before individual complaints arrive.

UK employers need to be able to show what steps they took, when, and for whom. A policy is part of that, but not sufficient on its own - risk assessment, training with records kept, communication, monitoring and prompt action on reports all contribute, and the whole approach benefits from regular review.

Responding to Bullying and Harassment at Work

When a concern is raised, it should be handled promptly, fairly and confidentially. The process is typically the grievance procedure, but with additional care around:

Supporting the complainant during the process, including time off if needed.
Considering whether interim measures (separating the parties, changing reporting lines temporarily) are appropriate.
Investigating properly, including hearing from witnesses.
Keeping the person raising the concern informed about progress while respecting the rights of the person complained about.
Taking appropriate disciplinary action where the concern is upheld.
Reviewing what the organisation can learn, particularly where patterns point to a wider issue.

Retaliation against someone raising a concern in good faith is itself a serious matter and should trigger its own response. Staff need to see that raising concerns is safe if the process is going to be trusted.

Bullying and Harassment and the Management System

Bullying and harassment cross several parts of the management system. Under ISO 45001 the duty to protect worker health includes mental health, which is directly affected by bullying. Under ISO 9001 and the other standards, meeting applicable legal requirements is a core Clause 4.2 duty, which includes the Equality Act 2010, the Worker Protection Act 2023 and the Employment Rights Act 2025 in the UK. Patterns in complaints or grievances should feed into management review as a people and risk indicator.

The expectation has moved from responding to harassment to preventing it, and it now reaches past the workforce to the customers, clients and members of the public that staff deal with every day. Employers need to be able to show all the reasonable steps they have taken - a risk assessment that looks at third-party contact role by role, training, clear policies, safe reporting routes, active monitoring. An out-of-date policy on a shelf will not meet that standard.

Bullying and harassment have real health consequences. Long-term exposure to sustained bullying can cause anxiety, depression, sleep problems and physical symptoms. H&S duties under the 1974 Act apply where that harm is foreseeable, which it often is if the behaviour has been reported or observed. This is not only an HR matter.

We have a clear policy and anonymous reporting, and we do annual training that covers what is expected of everyone and what managers specifically need to do. The hardest part is leadership modelling - people watch what leaders tolerate far more than what policies say. We have had to act on reports about well-regarded staff, and that has done more to build trust in the process than any amount of communication.

The test of an anti-bullying approach is not the policy document. It is what happens when someone raises a concern. Is it taken seriously. Is the person supported. Is the outcome proportionate. Is the same standard applied regardless of who is involved. Get those things right consistently and the culture follows.

Practical Compliance Guidance

Section 3.1 of the IMS1 IMS Manual covers the management of staff, including the arrangements for preventing and responding to bullying and harassment.

Several alphaZ documents support an approach to preventing and managing bullying and harassment:

alphaZ document	How to use it
ISO 9001, 14001 & 45001 IMS Toolkit	The complete toolkit for an integrated management system covering quality, environment and health and safety.
P-73 Anti-Bullying and Harassment Policy	Policy covering the organisation's approach to preventing and responding to bullying and harassment of any kind, including by third parties, with sections on reporting, investigation and review.
P-121 Sexual Harassment Policy	Policy specifically addressing sexual harassment, working to all reasonable steps to prevent it, including harassment by third parties.
RA-BR20 Harassment Risk Assessment	Worked example business risk assessment for harassment, with third-party harassment assessed by role, location and situation and conduct standards set for customers and suppliers.
RA-HS70 Workplace Harassment, Bullying and Discrimination Risk Assessment	Risk assessment covering workplace harassment and bullying, identifying higher-risk scenarios and the controls needed.
F-HS43 Harassment Risk Form	Form used to capture and evaluate harassment-related risks and incidents.
P-58 Grievance Policy	Policy covering how grievances are handled, including bullying and harassment concerns raised through the formal route.
GEN1-1 General Staff Handbook	Consolidated staff handbook covering the main company policies and raising awareness of the anti-bullying standards.

Note - all the above files can be downloaded with an alphaZ subscription.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between bullying and harassment?

In UK law, harassment has a specific meaning under the Equality Act 2010 - unwanted conduct related to a protected characteristic that violates dignity or creates a hostile environment. Bullying is a broader term covering unwanted behaviour that undermines or humiliates someone, which may or may not be tied to a protected characteristic. Both are unacceptable in the workplace, even where only one has a direct legal definition.

What does the law require to prevent sexual harassment?

The Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Act 2023 introduced a duty on UK employers to take steps to prevent sexual harassment of their workers, and the Employment Rights Act 2025 raised it to all reasonable steps. The law does not list the steps, so the EHRC guidance is the reference point. In practice that usually means a risk assessment, a clear policy, training, reporting routes that people trust, prompt action on reports and regular review. Tribunals can uplift compensation for successful sexual harassment claims by up to 25% where the duty has not been met, and policies alone are not sufficient.

Can harassment by a customer or third party be the organisation's responsibility?

Yes. In the UK, an employer can be held responsible when its staff are harassed by customers, clients, suppliers or members of the public, unless it took all reasonable steps to prevent it. That covers sexual harassment and harassment related to other protected characteristics. Bullying by a third party that is not linked to a protected characteristic can still engage health and safety duties where the risk is foreseeable. Controls typically include assessing third-party contact by role and location, conduct terms for customers and suppliers with the right to refuse or end service, training, clear escalation routes, the ability to withdraw from a situation, and records of any incidents.

How are bullying complaints investigated?

Bullying complaints usually go through the grievance procedure, with additional care for confidentiality and support. A proper investigation includes hearing from the complainant, the person complained about and any witnesses, reviewing relevant documents, reaching a reasoned conclusion and taking any necessary action. The complainant should be kept informed of progress within the constraints of confidentiality.

UK Legislation

The following UK legislation is relevant to bullying and harassment at work. Organisations outside the UK should identify the equivalent legislation applicable in their jurisdiction.