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Women in Football urges all employers in the UK football industry to heed the requirements of new legislation on sexual harassment in the workplace, which becomes law this week.

The Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Act 2023 will come into force on 26 October 2024 and impose a new duty on employers to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace, including third parties.  

A succession of high-profile cases, both in the UK and around the world, highlight the particular need for protections of this kind in the football industry. Findings from the annual Women in Football survey, furthermore, confirm that inappropriate conduct of this kind is widespread. In the 2024 survey almost one in five respondents working in the game (19%) reported experiencing sexual harassment at work.

Through the organisation’s Open Doors Agenda – published in 2023 following the Luis Rubiales controversy which followed the FIFA Women’s World Cup – WIF has already been campaigning for a stronger safeguarding framework to protect all women in the football industry from harassment and abuse.

While not addressing every aspect of the Open Doors Agenda, the UK’s new legislation appears to be a step in the right direction, obliging employers to take “reasonable steps” proactively and demonstrably in order to prevent sexual harassment.

The new duty applies to all employers regardless of their size or sector. Employers will need to be able to evidence the positive actions they have taken and should not approach the duty as a box-ticking exercise. Those steps are not defined in the Act, but are likely to include measures such as:

• clear policies that specifically tackle sexual harassment
• mandatory sexual harassment training for all staff
• additional training for managers on how to handle a complaint of harassment
• a culture of zero tolerance regarding harassment
• encouraging the reporting of sexual harassment by providing different methods of doing so, with a clear process and support available to those who raise complaints
• regular staff surveys to identify the extent of any problems or risks, both internally and in relation to any third parties employees come into contact with
• measures to help minimise the risk of sexual harassment by third parties
• monitoring the progress of all complaints
• workplace ‘champions’ to promote the company’s policies and stance against sexual harassment

 

The message from Women in Football

Women in Football members have echoed the wider message that the football industry needs to up its game in regard to tackling sexual harassment. We know that reporting issues is a challenge for women in the industry, with 60% of our survey respondents experiencing gender-based discrimination saying no action was taken after doing so, and 16% saying they were not listened to.

The best employers are already taking measures to ensure that women are protected from abusive behaviour, and that where violations occur, they are dealt with appropriately. The rest need to catch up, because from 26 October, UK employers’ new duties to act against sexual harassment will come into effect.

Anyone working in football who has been affected by these issues is welcome to contact Women in Football for support and signposting.

Women in Football also invites discussions with any interested parties on how the industry can collectively support women who experienced sexual harassment while working in football.

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