California has previously mandated that all employers with at least 50 employees conduct a sexual harassment prevention course for all employees. This meant that many small businesses had no obligation to provide any sort of sexual harassment prevention training. Recently however, California has passed Senate Bill No. 1343 that will impact many small businesses by January 1st, 2020.
Per S.B 1343, all employers with 5 or more employees will be required to implement a sexual harassment prevention training course. Here are the following requirements:
- Non-supervisory employees, including temporary or seasonal employees, are required to take at least 1 hour of sexual harassment training every two years.
- Supervisory employees, such as your managers or assistant managers, are required to take at least 2 hours of sexual harassment training every two years.
Inclusive in S.B. 1343 is harassment training related to the following: gender identity, gender expression, and sexual orientation.
The Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) is currently working on providing an online, interactive training course for employers to provide their employees. This is expected to be released by the DFEH in later 2019.
Bottom Line
If you have 5 or more employees in CA, mark your calendar! Starting on January 1st, 2020, you will be required to provide sexual harassment prevention training.
Paragon is here to keep you up to date on all business and tax changes that might affect you. Let us know if this article was helpful by leaving a comment below!
