ILO Convention 190

Baroness Prosser Excerpts

Monday 26th January 2026 Lords Chamber

[Lord Katz (Lab)]

The noble Lord is right that enforcement is as much a part of tackling the issue as is creating solutions to the nature of workplace culture. The Employment Rights Act does a number of things in this regard. As well as what I have already mentioned, it voids non-disclosure agreements between employers and workers that prevent a woman speaking out about relevant harassment and discrimination. It also strengthens protection for whistleblowers, making it explicit that sexual harassment can be the basis for protected disclosure. On top of all else, it creates the Fair Work Agency, which will monitor all these new workplace rights.

[Baroness Prosser (Lab)]

My Lords, an awful lot of these incidents occur because many people, in various kinds of workplace, either think the issue is a non-issue or that it is funny, or they just do not get it. How about, with companies that have been found guilty of not facing up to these problems properly and not dealing with them efficiently, taking some further action unless the company agrees and carries out proper training of its managers to ensure that they do understand what is wrong and spot things before they get out of hand?

[Lord Katz (Lab)]

My noble friend makes a very good point that enforcement has to be driven somewhat by example. It is important that we do not trivialise this issue, as some seek to do. I would widen that out past workplaces to the very issue of discrimination, harassment and violence against women and girls. That is why everybody in your Lordships’ House should be welcoming the Government’s violence against women and girls strategy that was published just before Christmas. We have a landmark mission to halve violence against women and girls over the next decade. That is the way that we place women’s equality at the heart of the Government’s missions.