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As the fallout from the Harrods sexual harassment cases continues, and with Al Fayed being compared to Jimmy Savile, it makes us question once again why on earth people were so reluctant to speak up. How could this very serious misconduct have taken place, over a substantial period of time, with no reports of the harassment being given to responsible managers, and therefore no action having been taken against the perpetrators? There are questions about employee fear and imbalance of power, but the cases clearly indicate that employers must do more to encourage a culture of speaking up.

It is not just the high-profile cases that hit the media in which we have experienced this reluctance of employees to come forward. As an employment lawyer, I have encountered it a number of times, with large and small private sector businesses. Every organisation will have a grievance policy but perhaps there is something daunting about setting off on a formal grievance when the perpetrator is a powerful and well-known man.

We have been working on a new Speaking Up Policy and Procedure which we will be rolling out shortly to our empLawyer® clients. We hope and expect that “speaking up” is easier for employees than raising a grievance. The policy gives protections to employees, and provides that any retaliation by a perpetrator against an employee for speaking up will be severely dealt with. It includes mechanisms for speaking up confidentially. However, it does not facilitate anonymous complaints as I have seen these causing damage and consternation a number of times, so that is not a route that I would recommend.

The new policy sits alongside our enhanced Sexual Harassment Policy, following legal changes to sexual harassment law in October. For empLawyer® clients these policies form part of our suite of 23 policies, but the two new policies can also be purchased separately for £99 plus VAT each. Click here to find out more.

As noted above, our recently released Sexual Harassment Policy is available to purchase as a stand-alone policy and the Speaking Up Policy and Procedure will be available shortly.

If you would like further information on any of the topics detailed in this blog or policies we have available please email advice@sherrardslaw.com or call the office on 01273 834120 to talk to a member of our team.