Calif. Harassment Act May Affect Out-of-State Managers

In 2004, California passed legislation mandating that supervisors of public-and private-sector employers or contractors with 50 or more employees receive sexual harassment training every two years. The California Fair Employment and Housing Commission’s latest proposed interpretative regulations of the law were released June 30, 2006.

    The proposed regulations cover part-time and temporary as well as full-time employees. “There is no requirement that the 50 employees or contractors work at the same location or all work or reside in California,” nor must the supervisors be located in California “so long as they directly supervise California employees.” Thus, employers and contractors who engage even one employee in California would be required to give direct supervisors of that employee two hours of sexual harassment training every two years.

    In the case of Web-based training or e-learning, the proposed regulations also require that the program be interactive and provide the trainees with the opportunity to have their questions answered with a direct link or directions on how to directly contact their trainers. Details of the proposed regulations for California Government Code Section 12950.1 can be reviewed online at http://www.fehc.ca.gov/pub/harassment _training.asp.

    Impact: Employers with any operations within California are advised to review this law and its regulations, and harassment training of supervisors and all other employees everywhere is always recommended.

Workforce Management, July 31, 2006, p. 11 — Subscribe Now!