Section 22 — Sexual harassment: power to make provision about “reasonable steps”

(1) The Equality Act 2010 is amended as follows.

(2) In Part 5 (work), in Chapter 1 (employment, etc), after section 40A insert— Prevention of sexual harassment: power to specify “reasonable steps” 40B (1) Regulations may specify steps that are to be regarded as “reasonable” for the purpose of determining whether, for the purposes of this Act, an employer (A) has taken, or failed to take, all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment of an employee of A (see, in particular, sections 40 and 40A and section 109). (2) The steps that may be specified in regulations under this section include, among others— (a) carrying out assessments of a specified description; (b) publishing plans or policies of a specified description; (c) steps relating to the reporting of sexual harassment; (d) steps relating to the handling of complaints. (3) Regulations under this section that specify any steps may require an employer to have regard to specified matters when taking those steps. (4) In this section— “sexual harassment” means harassment of the kind described in section 26(2) (unwanted conduct of a sexual nature); “specified” means specified in the regulations.

(3) In Part 16 (general and miscellaneous), in section 208(5) (regulations subject to affirmative procedure), after paragraph (a) insert— (aa) regulations under section 40B (prevention of sexual harassment: power to specify “reasonable steps”); .