Third-party harassment and what it means for employers

One of the least controllable forms of harassment, including sexual harassment, for employees and employers is that perpetrated by third parties like suppliers or customers. But that does not stop you as an employer from facing tribunals for their behaviour. In fact, the law says you are required to take ongoing action to prevent it from happening.

This applies to all harassment, not just sexual. The Employment Equality Acts 1998-2015 define harassment as unwanted conduct which is related to any of the nine discriminatory grounds. Sexual harassment is any form of unwanted verbal, non-verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature.

In each instance, the definition is conduct which has the purpose or effect of violating a person’s dignity and creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for the person. The Acts prohibit it.

Third-party harassment and your business

Even if third-party harassment hasn’t occurred, you’re still required to take all reasonable steps to prevent it from happening. You’re expected to anticipate harassment risks and act ahead of them.

Your sector or the frequency of third-party interactions in your workplace doesn’t matter: you’ll still be at risk of prosecution if a tribunal found there was more you reasonably could have done to prevent harassment.

The Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform created and updated code of practice on sexual harassment and harassment back in 2012. It is up to you to apply it to your business appropriately, so professional advice is recommended. It’s provisions are admissible in court.

Taking reasonable steps to avoid third-party harassment

Your preventative duty is very clear, but how exactly do you take all reasonable steps to prevent third-party harassment?

Conduct a risk assessment

Conducting a thorough risk assessment is a useful way to identify risks – and also a requirement to comply with your preventative duty. There are several risk factors to consider; including interactions with third parties, power imbalances, lone and night working or any circumstances where staff may be attending social events outside of work.

It’s also worth engaging with your staff during a risk assessment: your workforce hold an abundance of valuable information to feedback and may have a greater insight of prospective risks you’re unaware of.

Develop an anti-harassment policy

If you don’t already have one, you should develop an anti-harassment policy. This should be clearly communicated and made accessible to staff across your business, but also any third parties: clients or suppliers.

Drafting robust third-party commercial terms is a useful tool. If you have the bargaining power, you should require third parties to maintain an up-to-date anti-harassment policy that aligns with your own and ensure regular training of their staff. This protects you and your staff whilst promoting the positive impression that your company holds a strong standard.

Educate your staff

Although the regulations refer to third-party harassment, you’ll still need to train your staff to prevent, or if necessary, handle it. You should have training in place for management to understand how to challenge inappropriate behaviours – and how they can support staff if they occur. Meanwhile, your staff should be trained to understand what harassment actually is and how they can access support.

Get support

You’ll want to stay ahead of the game by incorporating best practices as soon as possible: especially in regards to preventative duty. We understand that the existing guidance is vague at best, and headache inducing at worst.

If you are seeking further clarity, get in touch today to see how we can help you with our extensive range of specialised services – from training to tribunal support.