Hundreds of thousands of women workers could benefit from better conditions after a High Court judge ordered the Government to rewrite the UK’s sexual equality rules to comply with European law.

In a landmark case brought by the Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC), a judge told the Department for Communities and Local Government, which is responsible for equal treatment issues, that it has seven days to either take steps to amend the current regulations or appeal against this morning’s decision.

If the changes go ahead, it could lead to a surge in compensation claims from women workers in the hospitality industry, whose employers would become liable for harassment by customers under the amended laws.

Lawyers for the EOC told the court at an earlier hearing that current UK laws do not protect women who are harassed by their employer’s clients or customers - even if the employer is aware of the issue – a situation that the judge has now agreed is incompatible with European law.

Welcoming today’s ruling, the EOC said it would be especially beneficial to the 670,000 women employed in the hotel and restaurant industries, where it claims sexual harassment by customers is rife.

However Hazel Oliver, an employment partner at Lewis Silkin, said that although the ruling was “potentially very good news for women, the Government is very likely to appeal and so nothing will change just yet”.

Ms Oliver said that some workers may be tempted to launch such claims on the back of today's judgment although they would be unlikely to be considered before any appeal was decided.

Calling for the UK rules to be overhauled, Mr Justice Burton said “clarity and certainty and comprehensibility” were needed in sexual equality regulations “by employees and employers alike”.

The judge agreed with the EOC’s argument that the 2005 regulations, which amended the Sex Discrimination Act 1975, contained substantial inadequacies and defined harassment too narrowly. The result, the judge accepted, was that they fell short of the EU directive’s intention, to ensure women were free from “any unwanted conduct related to their sex” in the workplace.

Arpita Dutt, an employment partner at Russell Jones & Walker, said: “This is a very welcome decision exposing deficiencies in the present sex discrimination legislation.

“Hopefully, this will lead to the Government introducing a swift and clear amendment to the legislation therefore increasing the protection for female workers who experience harassment in the workplace.”

The case took the form of a judicial review, a process through which interested parties can question Government legislation. The EOC successfully challenged the 2005 Employment Equality Regulations, arguing that they were incompatible with the European Equal Treatment Directive.

Responding to separate arguments from the EOC, the judge also accepted that the current rules contain a lack of clarity over rights to maternity leave as well as uncertainty over whether women who are not consulted regarding changes to their jobs while on leave are protected by UK law.

Mr Justice Burton agreed with the EOC’s argument that women occupied a special position during pregnancy and maternity leave that, in certain circumstances, required them to have special protection.

A spokesman for the Department for Communities and Local Government said: “This Government remains committed to ending discrimination against women, whether that is in the form of sexual harassment or pregnancy discrimination.

“This is a case about the technical interpretation of regulations and the requirements of EU law and we will be studying the ruling carefully before deciding on the appropriate way forward.”

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