What You Should Know About State Sexual Harassment Training Requirements

Preventing harassment and improving workplace culture is also the law

For a growing number of organizations, implementing an effective sexual harassment training program is not only one of the best practices for preventing harassment and improving workplace culture, it is also the law. In the wake of #MeToo, new state and local laws are requiring employers to provide sexual harassment training to all employees and managers. 

With this mandate, HR professionals have an opportunity to replace the conventional, check-the-box training model with a more creative approach that complies with state and local requirements and is relevant and engaging to a 21st-century workforce. 
 

First, the basic criteria for the current list of six states and one city that require sexual harassment training:  

New York

Oct. 9, 2019, was the deadline for New York employers to provide sexual harassment training to all employees, and then retrain them on an annual basis. 

New York requires that:

    New employees be trained as soon as possible after their start date.
    All workers receive training, regardless of immigration status, including part-time, temporary and seasonal workers.
    Training is interactive, requiring some level of employee participation and may be web-based.
    Employers should provide training in the language spoken by their employees.
    Employers are encouraged (not required) to keep a copy of training records and a signed acknowledgment that employees have read the organization's sexual harassment prevention policy.

In addition, NY recently amended the New York State Human Rights Law, to remove the “severe or pervasive” standard required for harassment claims — another change that underscores the importance of ensuring anti-harassment policies, procedures and training are current with federal, state and local laws.

New York City

NY state’s anti-harassment laws apply to all New York employers, however, New York City organizations with 15 or more employees have a few additional requirements under the Stop Sexual Harassment in NYC Act.

    Training must cover bystander intervention and retaliation.
    Training must include information on the complaint process available through the NYC Commission on Human Rights, the New York State Division of Human Rights and the EEOC.  
    NYC employers must keep training records for a minimum of three years. 
    Under the NYC Act, employers must train all employees by Dec. 31, 2019. 

Illinois

Illinois is the most recent state to enact new anti-harassment laws. Effective January 1, 2020, the Workplace Transparency Act contains sexual harassment training provisions, which apply to all Illinois employers.

    Employers must provide training to all employees on an annual basis.
    New employees must receive sexual harassment prevention training within 90 days of hire.
    Every bar and restaurant must have sexual harassment policies and training specifically tailored for the restaurant and bar industry.
    The training must meet or exceed the standards of the training model to be produced by the Illinois Department of Human Rights (IDHR) model.

Connecticut

Connecticut’s new law, known as the Time’s Up Act, became effective on October 1, 2019. 

Under the new law:

    All Connecticut employers, regardless of the size of their workforce, must provide sexual harassment training to supervisors by October 1, 2020, or within six months of an employee assuming a supervisory role.
    Organizations with three or more employees must provide two hours of training to all employees, not just supervisors. This is a big change from previous requirements (which applied to employers with 50 or more employees, and mandated that only supervisors receive training). 
    Existing employees must be trained by October 1, 2020, and then be retrained at least every 10 years.
    All employees hired on or after October 1, 2019, must receive training within six months of hire and be retrained at least every 10 years.
    Anyone who received the two-hour training after Oct. 1, 2018 doesn’t have to be retrained.
    Employers are encouraged to maintain training records for a minimum of one year.

California

By January 1, 2021, California employers with five or more employees must provide interactive sexual harassment training to both supervisors and nonsupervisory staff and then retrain every two years. 

Under the new law:

    Supervisory employees must complete at least two hours of classroom or other interactive training and education on sexual harassment prevention.
    Nonsupervisory employees must complete at least one hour of classroom or interactive training and education.
    New supervisory employees must be trained within six months of the assumption of a supervisory position.
    New nonsupervisory employees must be trained within six months of their hire.
    Beginning Jan. 1, 2020, seasonal and temporary employees – or any employee hired to work for less than 6 months – must receive training within 30 calendar days after the hire date or within 100 hours worked, whichever occurs first.
    Employers who provided training to employees in 2019 are not required to provide refresher training until two years after that.

Delaware

Delaware’s new law took effect on January 1, 2019, requiring that employers with 50 or more employees provide interactive training and education to all employees and supervisors.

Under the new law:
    All current employees must be trained by December 31, 2019, and then every two years.
    All new employees hired after January 1, 2019, must be trained within the first year of their start date, and then every two years.
    Supervisors must receive additional training on their responsibilities to prevent and correct sexual harassment and retaliation, and then be retrained every two years.

Maine

Employers with 15 or more employees must provide training to all employees within one year of their start date.

    Supervisory and managerial employees must receive additional training on their specific responsibilities to address sexual harassment complaints within one year of their hire or promotion.
    Employers must keep training records for at least three years and must make the records available for inspection upon request.

Beyond the Requirements

Legislators, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), HR professionals and other workplace experts agree that to be effective in today’s challenging workplace, sexual harassment training must shift from solely focusing on avoiding liability to changing behaviors. With new developments in eLearning and other technologies, organizations can implement training that is behavior-based and tailored to their industry and work environment. Further, by incorporating realistic video scenarios, interactivity and topics such as bystander intervention, diversity and inclusion, unconscious bias and respect and civility, training can have a positive impact on workplace conduct and culture.  

Preventing harassment and improving workplace culture is a complex challenge for HR professionals and organizations across industries. It requires a holistic approach that starts with a strong commitment from leadership, and includes accountability, comprehensive harassment policies, accessible complaint procedures and a creative approach to training that empowers employees with the knowledge and practical steps they need to recognize, report and prevent harassment and maintain a respectful, inclusive workplace.

Sources

•    https://www1.eeoc.gov/eeoc/newsroom/release/4-10-19.cfm
•    https://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/publications/promising-practices.cfm
 

Author Bio

Andrew Rawson is the Co-Founder and Chief Learning Officer of Traliant. Connect Andrew Rawson Follow @Traliant