Government rejects plea to ban NDAs in all harassment cases

Treasury Committee publishes response from the Government and regulators to report, Sexism in the City, on sexual harassment and bullying in the financial services sector

The report had concluded that progress to eradicate harassment was moving at a snail’s pace and called for a number of changes to existing workplace practices including a total ban on the use of non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) in all harassment cases.

In its response, the Government highlights action it has taken in preventing the use of NDAs in other sectors and argues that an NDA would “most likely” be unenforceable when related to reporting a crime to the police.

However, it does not commit to taking forward the Committee’s recommendation.

Its Chair, Dame Harriett Baldwin, said: “Steps like banning NDAs in all harassment cases and removing biases which benefit men in salary negotiations are straightforward, logical measures which would have a huge impact on people’s lives. I would continue to urge the Government to increase the pace of progress and competitiveness in this important sector.”

The Committee also recommended stronger protections for sexual harassment whistleblowers, a ban on prospective employers asking for salary history and a legal requirement to include salary bands on job adverts.

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