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The new duty to prevent harassment: what hospitality and tourism businesses need to know
July 23, 2026
By Fflur Jones
From October 2026, employers will have a strengthened legal duty to prevent sexual harassment and will also become liable for harassment carried out by third parties their staff encounter at work, including customers.
These legal changes will have major implications for tourism businesses, and employers need to act now to get ahead of them.
In plain terms, from October 2026, employers must take proactive steps to stop sexual harassment happening, not just react once it does. The Employment Rights Act 2025 introduces a requirement to take “all reasonable steps” to prevent sexual harassment. It also introduces a new liability where harassment related to a protected characteristic (not just sexual harassment) is carried out by third parties such as guests, customers or suppliers. That could include misogynistic behaviour, racism or homophobic comments as well as sexual harassment.
Tourism and hospitality businesses rely on customer-facing teams, seasonal peaks and late trading. When combined with factors like alcohol service, crowded venues and more use of younger casual and agency workers, those businesses can face a higher risk of harassment taking place than other sectors.
If employees or workers do face sexual harassment or harassment at work, they’re entitled to bring Employment Tribunal claims against their employer under the Equality Act 2010. If an employer is found to have breached the preventative duty for sexual harassment, it could face a penalty of 25% more compensation than would normally be payable to the employee.
We’re still waiting for new regulations from the UK Government which set out detailed guidance on what employers will have to do. However, we know that “all reasonable steps” means what a sensible employer would do to reduce risk in practice. This shouldn’t be treated as a box‑ticking exercise, and every business will be expected to risk assess the situation and take robust steps to protect their staff.
In hospitality, that might include:
For late‑night venues or alcohol‑led settings, reasonable steps might also include enhanced supervision at peak times, visible staff support measures and tailored risk assessments where staff work alone or off‑site. Employers are not required to eject every difficult customer, but you should be able to show proportionate measures before, during and after an incident.
Taking these steps now will help protect your staff, your reputation and your compliance when the new duty takes effect.
Darwin Gray provides employment and commercial legal advice to businesses across Wales, in both English and Welsh. Get in touch now for a conversation about how we can help you make sure your business is ready for the new legal changes. Contact us via our web form or on 02920 829 100.
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