Preparing Your Business for New Workplace Harassment Laws in 2026

From October 2026, employers will face new responsibilities for preventing workplace harassment by third parties such as customers, clients, contractors and members of the public.

For many SMEs, these changes represent a significant shift in employer responsibility. Businesses will need to take a far more proactive approach to protecting employees and managing workplace behaviour with HR policies in place.

What Are the New Workplace Harassment Law Changes?

The upcoming legislation will introduce a duty on employers to actively prevent third-party harassment in the workplace.

This means businesses may become liable not only for harassment between employees, but also for harassment carried out by:

• Customers

• Clients

• Suppliers

• Contractors

• Visitors

• Members of the public

The changes apply across all protected characteristics under the Equality Act 2010.

For example, if an employee experiences repeated inappropriate behaviour from a customer and the employer fails to take reasonable preventative steps, the business could face legal consequences.

This represents a major change for sectors where employees regularly interact with the public, including hospitality, retail, healthcare, transport and customer-facing office environments.

Why SMEs Need to Take This Seriously

Many smaller businesses still rely on informal workplace cultures and reactive HR processes. The problem is that the new legislation focuses heavily on prevention rather than simply responding after an incident occurs.

Employers will be expected to show they took reasonable steps to:

• Prevent harassment

• Assess workplace risks

• Train managers and staff

• Review policies

• Respond appropriately to complaints

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Businesses without updated HR procedures may find themselves exposed to unnecessary legal and reputational risk.

Reviewing Workplace Risk Areas

One of the first steps employers should take is identifying where employees may be exposed to higher risk situations.

This could include:

• Lone working

• Home visits

• Customer-facing roles

• Remote working

• Site-based work

• Late-night working environments

Employers should consider how employees interact with third parties and whether sufficient safeguards already exist.

For example, are managers trained to deal with customer harassment complaints? Are incidents documented properly? Do employees feel confident reporting issues?

These are the kinds of questions businesses should now be asking.

Policies and Training Will Need Updating

Many workplace harassment policies currently focus only on employee-to-employee behaviour. That will no longer be enough.

Businesses should review:

• Anti-harassment policies

• Grievance procedures

• Disciplinary procedures

• Staff handbooks

• Manager training programmes

  
  

Employees need to understand what behaviour is unacceptable and how concerns should be raised. Managers also need confidence in handling complaints consistently and professionally.

Training should not become a box-ticking exercise. It needs to reflect real workplace situations that employees may encounter.

Settlement Agreements and NDAs Are Also Changing

Another significant development involves confidentiality clauses in settlement agreements and NDAs.

The Employment Rights Act 2025 includes provisions that could make clauses preventing disclosure of harassment or discrimination ineffective.

This is another reason why businesses need properly structured HR support and legally up-to-date documentation.

Culture Matters as Much as Compliance

Policies alone will not protect a business if workplace culture tolerates poor behaviour.

Organisations that communicate expectations clearly, support employees properly and address issues early are generally in a much stronger position when problems arise.

Employees are increasingly aware of their rights, and businesses that fail to modernise their HR approach may struggle with:

• Staff retention

• Recruitment

• Reputation

• Employee trust

Good HR is no longer simply about compliance. It plays a major role in workplace culture and business stability.

HR Consultancy Support for Kent Employers

At Swan HR Consultancy, we help businesses across Kent and London prepare for changing employment law and strengthen their workplace policies.

From HR audits and policy reviews to manager training and ongoing HR support, we provide practical guidance that helps employers reduce risk and manage staff issues professionally.

If your business would benefit from reviewing its workplace harassment policies or wider HR procedures ahead of the upcoming legal changes, contact Swan HR Consultancy today.