Ciphr relaunches sexual harassment course as Worker Protection Act comes into force

HR software and eLearning provider Ciphr has relaunched its ‘sexual harassment training course’, to coincide with the Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Act 2023, which came into force on 26th October.

The legislation puts a legal onus on organisations to take ‘reasonable steps’ to prevent sexual harassment of their employees and workers.

Ciphr’s updated sexual harassment training was designed to complement and draw attention to organisations’ anti-sexual harassment policies, and their procedures for reporting and dealing with harassment complaints.

The training covers the latest legislation, with situational examples about what constitutes sexual harassment, how to recognise and report it – as a victim or witness – and how to get support or take action.

Ann Allcock, head of diversity at Ciphr eLearning, said: “Employers must take note of the new legislation on sexual harassment.

“It introduces a requirement for all employers, without exception, to consciously take best practice steps to reduce the risk of sexual harassment occurring in the first place, as well as strengthen their procedures for reporting and handling complaints to safeguard and support employees.

“Organisations with front-line and customer-facing staff also need to consider situations in which employees could be at risk of sexual harassment from third parties and act, where needed, to minimise that risk. 

“The sexual harassment law is an important step towards stamping out sexual harassment at work.

“The time for tolerating such behaviours is long over, and it’s vital that employers focus their efforts on fostering a speak-up workplace culture that understands, respects, and values each employee.”

Allcock added: “Ciphr’s sexual harassment eLearning course provides a convenient and sustainable solution to help employers take one of the ‘reasonable steps’ required by the Worker Protection Act.

“In other words, to train employees on the nature of sexual harassment and their rights and responsibilities at work. It combines information with instruction and interactivity and is also lightly customisable – enabling organisations to add details about their own policies, procedures, reporting channels and sources of support.

“Thousands of employees across the UK have already completed this training.”