UK Employment Rights Act 2025: Harassment law is getting tougher – and games companies need to be ready

Headline: UK Employment Rights Act 2025: Harassment law is getting tougher – and games companies need to be ready

The second installment of our series examining the potential consequences of the new Employment Rights Act (ERA) 2025 on gaming businesses operating within the United Kingdom focuses on the enhanced anti-harassment regulations. The games industry has long grappled with issues of workplace culture, bullying, discrimination, and sexual harassment.

Several studios have made significant strides in improving their work environments and fostering inclusivity. However, the new ERA 2025 amendments suggest that employers must take even more stringent measures to ensure a harassment-free workplace.

While these changes may not appear monumental at first glance, they represent a substantial overhaul of anti-harassment best practices since the introduction of the Equality Act 2010. For a sector built on collaboration between developers, publishers, platform holders, partners, and millions of global players, these modifications pose unique challenges.

How can employers protect employees from harassment by external parties? What extent does an employer's responsibility extend when game development occurs across numerous organizations, jurisdictions, and online communities?

One of the most notable reforms entails the reinstatement of employer liability for harassment perpetrated by third parties. Many readers may be unaware that this concept was previously present in the Equality Act 2010 but was later repealed by the Coalition Government in 2013. Under ERA 2025, employers will once again be held accountable for safeguarding workers from harassment committed by non-employees.

Employers will be responsible for protecting workers from harassment carried out by people who are not employees from October 2026 onwards. For gaming companies, this could pose significant challenges, given the numerous interactions the industry has with external entities and individuals. A single game might involve various collaborators, including developers, publishers, platform holders, co-development studios, localization providers, QA partners, voice actors, motion capture specialists, freelancers, agencies, and investors, often distributed across multiple countries and businesses.

Moreover, employees themselves may encounter abusive or discriminatory behavior from community managers, customer support teams, developers attending events, or even online interactions.

The question then arises: where exactly does an employer's responsibility end? If an employee faces harassment by a publishing partner during a crucial meeting or endures sustained abuse from players while performing their duties, what practical steps should the employer take? The answer will likely depend on the specific circumstances.

Employers cannot control every online interaction or public engagement, but they will increasingly be expected to proactively assess the risks their employees face and implement appropriate safeguards. This may encompass establishing behavioral expectations with external partners, instructing staff on reporting procedures, offering additional support to employees in public-facing roles, and considering further protections for individuals subjected to repeated abuse.

The emphasis, as with many aspects of the ERA, shifts from reacting to problems after they occur to preventing them wherever reasonably possible. The second major development builds upon the earlier requirement introduced in October 2024, which mandated employers to proactively take "reasonable steps" to prevent sexual harassment within the workplace.

This was an improvement over the previous Equality Act 2010, which did not explicitly prescribe preventative measures but instead allowed employees to sue for discriminatory conduct or harassment.

From October 2026, the revised wording requires employers to take "all reasonable steps" to prevent sexual harassment from taking place in the workplace. Although this minor change in phrasing may seem inconsequential, its practical implications could be substantial. Employers will now be expected to implement more comprehensive measures to safeguard against sexual harassment.

For instance, they may need to assess whether certain teams face heightened risks and provide tailored support accordingly. Imagine a studio offering annual online harassment training but neglecting to evaluate the unique challenges faced by community management teams dealing with abusive players or finance departments with limited public interactions.

Under the new requirements, employment tribunals are likely to hold employers to a much higher standard, demanding a thorough demonstration of their efforts to prevent sexual harassment.