Bullying, harassment and sexual harassment policy

What is a bullying, harassment and sexual harassment policy and when should you use it?

Bullying, harassment and sexual harassment claims by employees can be incredibly costly affairs.

While there is no express statutory legal obligation on employers to have policies covering bullying, harassment and sexual harassment, it is strongly advisable.

The Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 and the Employment Equality Acts, together with the common law, create indirect obligations on you, which amount to pretty much the same thing.

If you do not have a policy in place dealing with these issues, you will have a hard time defending claims made against you, as it will be difficult to show that you have discharged your statutory duties.

The best way for you to discharge this obligation is by having a policy which covers bullying, harassment and sexual harassment.

This is a very detailed template that covers all three, clearly defining what they mean and that any breaches will lead to disciplinary action.

It also sets out your procedure for dealing with allegations of bullying, harassment and sexual harassment.

Like any other policy, we recommend that you do not give this policy contractual status but instead that you reference it in the contract of employment and then incorporate it within your employee handbook.

This allows you to update and revise it as and when you want to.

You can find our employee handbook template here