Harassment in the workplace is often thought of as an issue arising between colleagues. However, employers may also face significant risks when harassment is perpetrated by individuals outside the organisation.

Third-party harassment can arise in a wide variety of settings, including interactions with customers, clients, contractors, suppliers, service users, visitors and members of the public. For many organisations, particularly those operating in customer-facing environments, these relationships can present some of the greatest risks to staff wellbeing and organisational reputation.

Recent developments in employment law have brought renewed focus to the issue of third party harassment. From 30 October 2026, employers may be liable where workers are subjected to unlawful harassment by third parties in the course of their employment and the employer cannot demonstrate that it took all reasonable steps to prevent the harassment. This represents a significant expansion of employers’ obligations in relation to interactions with customers, clients, suppliers, contractors and other third parties.

These changes sit alongside the strengthened duty on employers to take all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace. Although the two reforms are related and both involve an “all reasonable steps” standard, they operate separately and address different risks.

As a result, employers should be considering not only their workplace policies and training but also the practical and contractual measures available to manage risks arising from third-party relationships.

What Is Third-Party Harassment?

Third-party harassment occurs where a worker is subjected to unwanted conduct by someone who is not employed by their organisation and that conduct is sufficiently serious to amount to unlawful harassment.

Examples may include:

• A customer making sexually inappropriate comments to a member of staff.
• A supplier making racist remarks towards a worker.
• A contractor mocking a worker’s disability.
• A service user making homophobic comments towards a member of staff.
• A visitor engaging in intimidating or offensive behaviour towards a worker.

Whilst employers may have less direct control over the behaviour of third parties than they do over their own workforce, this does not eliminate the legal and practical risks such conduct creates. Employers should take proactive steps to identify situations in which third-party harassment may arise and implement appropriate measures to prevent it.

Why Should Employers Be Concerned?

Third-party harassment can have significant consequences for both workers and organisations. In many organisations, workers interact with third parties more frequently than they do with colleagues. As a result, employers should consider whether appropriate safeguards are in place to manage the risks arising from those interactions.

For individuals, harassment can affect wellbeing, engagement and confidence at work. For employers, it can lead to grievances, sickness absence, employee relations issues, reputational damage and potential legal claims.

Importantly, third-party harassment is not limited to sexual harassment. Depending on the circumstances, it may relate to a range of protected characteristics, including race, disability, religion or belief, sexual orientation, age, sex and gender reassignment.

Employers should therefore take a broad view of the risks that may arise from interactions with individuals outside their organisation and ensure that preventative measures are not focused solely on sexual harassment.

All Reasonable Steps

The concept of “all reasonable steps” is central both to the new third-party harassment provisions and the strengthened duty to prevent sexual harassment. What constitutes reasonable steps will depend on the nature of the organisation, its resources and the risks faced by its workforce. Employers should therefore adopt a risk-based approach and be able to demonstrate not only that appropriate measures exist, but also that they are effective in practice.

Beyond HR: Why Commercial Contracts Matter

Third-party harassment is not just an HR issue. The implications extend much further into business operations and commercial relationships, and organisations should consider whether their contracts, procurement processes and wider policies can support efforts to prevent harassment in the workplace and protect workers.

Whilst there is currently no requirement to include specific anti-harassment provisions in commercial contracts, organisations may wish to draw parallels with compliance approaches adopted in areas such as anti-bribery and modern slavery. Many businesses have sought to demonstrate their efforts to prevent anti-bribery and modern slavery breaches by incorporating contractual obligations, supplier codes of conduct, audit rights and compliance commitments into their commercial arrangements. Similar measures may assist organisations in evidencing a proactive approach to preventing third-party harassment and be part of the demonstration of “all reasonable steps”.

Depending on the level of risk, that may extend beyond policies and training and require consideration of supplier management, procurement processes and specific contractual arrangements with third parties.

In higher-risk environments, particularly where suppliers, contractors or agency workers regularly work alongside employees on site, businesses may wish to consider more robust contractual protections. These might include compliance obligations, contractual commitments to uphold anti-harassment standards, audit rights, warranties regarding training and conduct, and, where commercially appropriate, indemnity protection.

How much each business needs to do will depend on the circumstances of that business and the level of third party interactions that its employees will have. Organisations operating in public-facing sectors, for example, may be expected to take more extensive steps than employers whose workers have limited contact with customers, suppliers or other third parties.

Employers should therefore consider whether their terms and conditions, supplier agreements, procurement processes and codes of conduct should be reviewed as part of their broader strategy for preventing third-party harassment and demonstrating that appropriate preventative steps have been taken.

What Practical Steps Should Employers Take?

The steps required will vary depending on the nature of the organisation and the risks faced by its workforce. However, employers should consider:

• Undertaking risk assessments that specifically address third-party interactions.
• Identifying roles and locations where workers particularly exposed to risk.
• Providing meaningful training for managers and workers.
• Maintaining clear anti-harassment policies and procedures.
• Ensuring that reporting mechanisms are accessible and well understood.
• Investigating complaints promptly and appropriately.
• Monitoring incidents and identifying patterns or emerging risks.
• Reviewing the effectiveness of existing preventative measures.
• Keeping records of actions taken and decisions made.

A key message from the EHRC’s guidance is that written policies alone are unlikely to be sufficient. Employers should be able to demonstrate that their policies are understood in practice and supported by effective preventative measures.

Looking Ahead

Third-party harassment is likely to remain an area of increasing focus for employers.

From 30 October 2026, employers must navigate two complementary but distinct developments in the law. First, employers may be liable where workers are harassed by third parties in the course of their employment unless they can demonstrate that they took all reasonable steps to prevent that harassment. Secondly, employers are subject to a strengthened duty to take all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace.

Although these obligations are distinct, many of the measures required to comply with them are likely to overlap. Risk assessments, training, reporting procedures, management action, supplier oversight and contractual controls may all assist employers in demonstrating compliance.

Conclusion

Third-party harassment can no longer be viewed as an issue outside an employer’s control. The introduction of employer liability from October 2026 means that organisations must actively consider the risks arising from customers, clients, suppliers, contractors and other third parties.

Employers should ensure that workplace policies, training programmes, reporting mechanisms and risk assessments address those risks and should also consider whether procurement processes, supplier management arrangements and commercial contracts support their wider prevention strategy.

Organisations that take a proactive, risk-based approach will be better placed to protect their workforce, reduce legal exposure and demonstrate that they have taken all reasonable steps to prevent harassment should their practices come under scrutiny.

If you are looking for more information and advice that is tailored to you and your business, talk to our friendly team today by calling 01482 325272 or email enquiries@andrewjackson.co.uk