VBJ June 2019

June 2019
THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL
www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com
11
New Law Requires Mandatory Sexual Harassment Training for All Employees
Never in my 35 + years in Human Resources/Labor
Relations experience, have I
ever seen such dramatic focus on any such
labor law as the new Sexual Harassment/
Discrimination and Bullying, as I have seen
it in these past couple of years!
Many Sexual Harassment cases of
Celebrities, well known Sports figures and
Corporate Leaders have made such recent
dramatic headlines to add more focus on Harassment.
So now more than ever employers
are required to pay attention to the two main
Laws – AB 1825 and SB 1343!
The #MeToo movement has renewed
attention on sexual harassment in the workplace.
California, being at the forefront
of workplace protections, passed several
anti-harassment laws this year. Importantly,
former Governor Brown recently signed SB
1343 which requires employers with five (5)
or more employees to provide training to all
employees (both supervisory and non-supervisory)
by January 1, 2020.
State & Federal Agencies overseeing
these laws are the Department of Fair Employment
and Housing (DFEH) and Equal
Employment Opportunity Commission
(EEOC). So, with this new law SB1343,
employers need to understand that by complying
with the mandatory compliance, you
are protecting your organization! How you
may ask?
By being proactive in training and
making sure your Harassment Policy is up
to date. Compliance of AB1825 & SB1343
dictates that all employers must train management
and employees by the end of 2019.
You might ask? What am I required to do
as business owner or head of a corporation?
PLEASE READ:
Key Points
Employers with at least five (5) employees
are required to provide:
1 Two hours of sexual harassment prevention
training to all supervisory employees;
2 One hour of sexual harassment prevention
training to all non-supervisory employees.
• Part-time and temporary employees,
plus independent contractors count
toward the minimum employee count
of five (5) employees.
• Must be done by January 1, 2020.
• Training must occur within six months
of the employee starting the position
(and every two years thereafter).
• Sexual harassment prevention training
may be conducted individually or as a
group.
• The Department of Fair Employment
and Housing (DFEH) will accept em-
Previous Law (2018) New Law—SB 1343 (2019)
Employers with 50+ Employees
Covered
Two Hours of Mandatory Training Only
for Supervisors
Employers with 5+ Employees Covered
One Hour of Mandatory Training for
Non-Supervisors
Two hours of for Supervisors and
ployers developing their own training
platforms or use those of experienced
and Certified Trainers.
This new law is a dramatic shift from
the current requirements of which has been
in place for more than a decade. Previous
law required employers with at least 50
employees to provide supervisors with two
hours of sexual harassment prevention training
within six months of hire and every two
years thereafter.
NOW, the threshold number of
employees that triggers coverage under
the law has been lowered to five (5), and
non-supervisory employees are included
in the training mandate.
How Soon Should I Do The Training?
This law is going to require all employers—large
and small—to look at their
calendars to determine when they can train
their supervisors and employees in 2019 (to
meet the Jan. 1, 2020 deadline). The myriad
of new California anti-harassment laws
make one thing abundantly clear-Employers
must take steps to prevent harassment in the
workplace and failure to do so can lead to
INCREASED LIABILITY!
Senate Bill No. 1343 - CHAPTER 956
(Approved by Governor September
30, 2018. Filed with Secretary of
State September 30, 2018.)
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DI-
GEST - SB 1343, Mitchell. Employers:
sexual harassment training: requirements:
(f) If an employer violates this section, the
department may seek an order requiring the
employer to comply with these requirements.
Company Policy on Sexual Harassment
– Required by Fair Employment and
Housing Act (FEHA)
• Provides Employees with a Complaint Procedure
Policy on reporting any Harassment
• The Policy will provide to employees the
investigating process and conclusion - No
Retaliation
• It provides the employee road map on
complaint process and the Employer must
emphasis that any complaint brought forth
by an employee will be without retaliation.
• This will also provide employees of the
steps to take if they do not want to report an
incident to their Supervisor and it will provide
for the employee the right to complain
to either a Manager or Human Resources.
• Per this Policy a supervisors/manager will
have the knowledge of taking each complaint
seriously and again recognize that
there can be no retaliation to an employee
that brings forth harassment charges.
Please contact: Jack Bermudez, Sr. Human
Resources/Labor Relations Consultant,
HRCS, LLC with any questions about the
new law and compliance with the expanded
training requirements and to schedule training.
Also, to request cost estimate for training
please request Discovery Questionnaire
email: hr4jack@hotmail.com or call Cell:
951-704-4509.
Being Proactive is Prevention against
lawsuits and charges!
COMMUNITY
by
by
Jack Bermudez
Steve Fillingim