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The Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Act 2023 came into force on 26th October 2024 and introduces a new duty for employers to take “reasonable steps” to prevent sexual harassment of employees in the course of their employment.
Whilst sexual harassment itself was already unlawful under the Equality Act 2010, this new legislation requires employers to go much further than merely reacting to claims, to additionally put an emphasis on preventing sexual harassment.
The legislation has been worded to include all workers, not just those in standard employment contracts – which means that this also applies to Interim and temporary workers. All stakeholders in interim or temporary placements – recruitment agencies, umbrellas, MSPs and end-clients – need to consider how best to protect a worker against sexual harassment in their assignment and this should be collaborative through the supply chain.
The Equality & Human Rights Commission has been helpful in providing technical guidance for direct employers including an 8-step guide that can be used when deciding what are “reasonable steps” to take to protect their workers. Both of these are excellent resources, but for those involved in hiring interim and temporary workers, Section 4.42 of the guidance is particularly relevant.
The wording here is clear that whilst the responsibility lies with the Agency to check that the end client (hirer) has the “appropriate arrangements in place for the prevention of and to deal with complaints of harassment and victimisation”, it is the end client who should be taking the steps. In practice, this means that the Agency, whether supplying directly or via an Umbrella company, requires the end client to have taken reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment before the assignment can go ahead. Further, section 4.44 states that its normally “..most appropriate for the hirer (end client) to investigate any complaint relating to harassment or victimisation of agency workers..”, again suggesting the practical responsibility lies with the end client.
The practical considerations for employers’
So, what does this mean in practice? Our advice is straightforward – when considering your policies, processes and controls for your OWN employees in regard to preventing sexual harassment in the workplace – don’t forget the interim and temporary workers!
If you are a regular user of interim and temporary staff you may well have already considered them, but if you are an occasional or first-time user of interims, or perhaps have an interim in an office location or department for the first time since the legislation came into effect then we think these are worth considering which specifically apply to these workers:
- Awareness: Ensure your Hiring Managers know - and that training and policies make it clear - that this legislation applies to interim and temporary workers, not just your permanent staff.
- Risk Assessment: Conduct a risk assessment for the interim role, especially if it is a new position or one not typically seen in your organisation. In particular think, about any lone or night working, any 1-2-1 situations such as site visits, building inspections or any travel that involves overnight stays. Consider points of contact with the public, such as reception, concierge, resident service managers and building managers where there may be risk of third-party harassment.
- Policies & Training: Ensure the interim or temporary worker is provided with access to your policies - and reads them - typically during their first day induction and are included in any updates or further training (particularly if the assignment is a long placement as training is recommended annually). We encourage them to be proactive in seeking out these policies as well as reminding them that they also apply to them whilst in assignment. They are also provided either with our sexual harassment policy or that of the umbrella company depending on the type of placement.
- Points of Contact: Ensure they know the point(s) of contact for raising any concerns around sexual harassment, including what the reporting process is, particularly if these are contacts they wouldn’t normally come across in their day-to-day role.
- Power Imbalance: Sexual harassment can often be unreported where there is significant power imbalance in the working relationship. Be aware how any existing power imbalance may be exaggerated because the interim or temporary worker is not a permanent member of staff and may feel a heightened sense of job insecurity, which may inhibit them raising complaints.
- Social Events: Consider any social events that the interim or temporary worker may be invited to, in particular where alcohol is present, as they may not have the personal network at work that longer-serving permanent employees do should there be any incident of harassment.
- Monitor & Evaluate: Include interim and temporary workers in any internal reviews or surveys where employee sentiment around sexual harassment is sought including 1-2-1s, town halls, sentiment surveys and DE&I initiatives.
- Access: Ensure your systems of communication, reporting and evaluation include interim and temporary workers. For instance, if training updates go to all staff via a group email distribution group, but your interim or temporary workers’ emails are not in this group, they will need to be messaged additionally. If the policies, reporting methods, training or surveys are held in an intranet or HR system which they don’t have access to, they either need to be added or given access to this information a different way.
- Third-Party Harassment: Consider where an interim or temporary role may introduce different third parties to those you normally deal with, for example where auditors, management consultants, SI partners etc are working on a project with your interim or temporary worker.
Final thoughts on implementing the legislation in real estate and construction
These are our suggestions of some of the areas we think may be overlooked for interims and temporary workers and by no means exhaustive. Giving them consideration shouldn’t be overwhelming, but it is perhaps useful to understand what a “reasonable step” is. The guidance includes detail in 3.27 onwards on factors which determine what is reasonable, including the size and resources of the employer, so do keep this in mind when determining what steps to put in place for interim or temporary placements.
For the most part in the real estate and construction sectors that we operate in, and the type of interim and temporary placements that we make, these workers can be treated just like permanent members of staff. But it's important not to exclude, forget or overlook them for risk assessments and the training and induction of any policies relating to sexual harassment, so we will be seeking confirmation from our clients that this will be provided. But we hope that the other suggestions help you to ensure that reasonable steps are taken across the duration of the assignment, creating a positive working environment for all staff, regardless of employment status.
We are always happy to provide advice based on our experience of these placements but of course any legal or HR advice should be sought from qualified professionals or industry bodies.