HR professionals remain concerned their organisation is not compliant with Worker Protection Act, a year after its implementation
7 October 2025
More than half of UK businesses fear they have not done enough to meet their legal obligations to prevent sexual harassment, with 54 per cent of HR professionals saying they were concerned not enough had been done to comply with the Worker Protection Act.
The Act, which came into effect on 26 October 2024, requires employers to take all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace.
Despite the legal duty being in place for almost a year, many organisations are still falling short on key preventative actions. Four in 10 (41 per cent) of the businesses surveyed by WorkNest had not conducted a sexual harassment risk assessment, while 22 per cent were unsure whether a valid assessment had been carried out.
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The findings come alongside a recent increase in sexual harassment enquiries submitted to Acas. Calls to the Acas helpline asking for advice on harassment at work rose by 39 per cent in the first half of 2025 to 5,583, data from law firm Nockolds revealed.
Lorna Gemmell, employment law and HR training manager at WorkNest,...
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