Aiming for Gold Standard Good Employment

Good Employment Week 2025 (17-23 November) has officially begun!

It’s a dedicated national campaign to champion fairness, legal pay, professionalism, and respect for everyone working in equestrian workplaces.

This year, one of the most important focuses is the new Equestrian Workforce Behaviours Survey, launched jointly by the British Grooms Association (BGA), British Equestrian (BEF) and Equestrian Employers Association (EEA).

This anonymous survey aims to uncover the reality of bullying, harassment (including sexual harassment), and inappropriate behaviour across equestrian yards.

The BGA is urging every groom to take part. Your experience - whether past or present - is vital in helping the industry understand what is really happening, and what must change.

Click the image below to take the Equestrian Workforce Behaviours Survey now!

Gold Standard Good Employment

Good Employment Week will cover key themes each day, including contracts, safety, fair pay, employer responsibilities, and how grooms can protect their rights.

The BGA will highlight what Gold Standard Good Employment truly looks like, and why it matters.

All grooms should expect and receive:

• The correct employment status
• A written contract from day one
• At least the National Minimum Wage for every hour worked
• Safe working conditions
• Respect and professionalism from employers and colleagues

Yet too many grooms continue to face poor practices: unpaid overtime, unsafe workplaces, bullying, coercive behaviour, or uncertainty over their terms of employment.

Good Employment Week aims to educate and empower grooms to know where they stand and how to get support when something isn’t right.

There will also be lighter moments, including the return of Give Your Staff a Pizza Day, but always grounded in the bigger message: Respect and good employment are NON-NEGOTIABLE.

Speaking up for a safer equestrian industry

Central to this year’s campaign is creating a culture where every groom feels safe at works and safe to speak up if not.

That’s why the Equestrian Workforce Behaviours Survey is so crucial. It provides a confidential space for grooms to share whether they have experienced or witnessed:

• Bullying
• Verbal abuse
• Sexual harassment
• Inappropriate or coercive behaviour
• Behaviour that made them feel unsafe or unable to speak out

The findings will shape future safeguarding guidance, employer education, and industry-wide action.

The BGA is calling on all grooms, employed and freelance, from every discipline, to complete the anonymous survey today.

>> Take the Equestrian Workforce Behaviours Survey now