New California law requires that all employers of five or more employees must provide one hour of sexual harassment and abusive conduct prevention training to non-managerial employees and two hours of sexual harassment and abusive conduct prevention training to managerial employees once every two years. Prior law only required training of supervisory employees.
Under the Department of Fair Employment and Housing regulations, the definition of “employee” includes full-time, part-time, and temporary employees. There is no requirement that the five employees work at the same location or that all work or reside in California. Thus, with very few exceptions, virtually every employer in California must now provide sexual harassment training to its employees.
The law requires that employees be trained during calendar year 2019. Employees who received training in 2018 or before will need to be retrained. Both managerial and non-managerial employees must receive training by January 1, 2020. After January 1, 2020, employees must be retained once every two years.
The training must be provided by trainers or educators with knowledge and expertise in these areas (e.g., attorneys, human resources professionals, professors or instructors who meet certain criteria). The law sets out specific topics that must be covered in the training, the manner in which the training is provided, and required documentation of the training. RPNA has attorneys experienced in providing the necessary training and can assist you in complying with all of the new requirements. For further information on sexual harassment training and how to comply with the new law, please contact Michael Adreani at mba@rpnalaw.com or Marina Vitek at mnv@rpnalaw.com.
The experienced employment law attorneys at Roxborough, Pomerance, Nye & Adreani, LLP are available to answer your questions about these laws and their potential effect on your business, and we will continue to be at the forefront of advocating for the best interests of California employers.
