From 26 October 2024, employers will have a new positive legal obligation to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment. 

Rather than focusing on addressing sexual harassment in a reactive way, going forwards, employers will need to take proactive steps to anticipate and prevent sexual harassment from happening.  If sexual harassment takes place, employers will need to take action to stop it from reoccurring.  Although the law does not currently make employers liable for harassment of their staff by third parties, this new duty is intended to apply to sexual harassment by third parties such as customers, fans and other members of the public.   This means that employers will now be expected to treat sexual harassment by third parties equally as seriously as harassment by their own employees, and will need to take preventative measures to stop this from happening.   Given the large number of third parties who come into contact with sports clubs’ employees, this could be a significant obligation. 

What steps could sports clubs be taking to comply with this new duty?

To comply with this new duty, some of the steps sports clubs could take are:

1. Clear Polices: Develop and communicate a clear policy that outlines the club’s stance on sexual harassment and the procedures for reporting and addressing complaints.  The policy should cover harassment by third parties, including fans.  Ensure the policy is easily accessible to all employees, including those who may not have access to intranets and other internal systems.
2. Training and Awareness: Ensure training on sexual harassment is rolled out to all employees and refreshed regularly.  Train managers separately on how to spot and handle complaints of sexual harassment. 
3. Complaints/Investigation Channels: Establish multiple channels for reporting complaints of sexual harassment and ensure these are promoted and publicised to all employees.  Ensure you have a clear investigation process in place for when you receive a complaint and ensure your investigators are trained in handling sexual harassment investigations sensitively. Maintain a complaints database so you can analyse and spot trends in the issues that are being raised. Following an investigation, ensure you implement any outcomes/recommendations to prevent repeat occurrences. 
4. Employee Support Systems: Implement support systems for those affected by sexual harassment, ensuring that employees feel safe and supported when coming forward.  Consider introducing an Employee Assistance Programme or a Guardians programme.
5. Risk Management: Identify the risk areas where sexual harassment could be more likely to occur (e.g. on late kick off match days when fans could have been drinking more pre-game) and implement steps to reduce these risks (e.g. consider moving more vulnerable employees to the family areas for these games). 
6. Leadership: Create a culture in which employees feel safe and able to raise concerns. Ensure the message from top down is that sexual harassment won’t be tolerated and any complaints will be taken seriously, and ensure this happens in practice. 
7. Third Parties: Inform third parties, including fans, of your zero-tolerance policy to sexual harassment – e.g. by having signage up around the ground, advising fans of this policy when they book their tickets, and having announcements made on matchdays and in programmes.  Include provisions in your contracts with suppliers requiring them to train their staff on sexual harassment and ensure you have the ability to terminate a supply contract in the event that a supplier’s staff member harasses one of your employees.

While the new duty may seem like an added challenge, it’s an opportunity for clubs to demonstrate leadership off the pitch and set a standard for others to follow. By working to prevent sexual harassment, clubs can ensure that all their employees can enjoy a safe and respectful working environment.

For more information on the new duty see our recent article on what employers need to know, or download our guide to the six areas to focus on here.  Need more help with preparing for this new duty? Contact our team.