How Often Should You Receive Harassment Training At Work?
Sexual harassment training should be at the forefront of any business owner’s mind when they are planning their annual schedules. Although workplace harassment training is now required by law across several different states, each of them has varying requirements that businesses are expected to meet.
Some say that you should provide training every year and others say every two years, for example.
Regardless of the labor law in your area, a business owner should always be providing sexual harassment training for their managers and employees. Harassment in the workplace is still an all too common problem and it has got the point where employers must start to make positive moves to reduce its prevalence. The easiest way to do this is to invest in sexual harassment training.
How often do you need training at work?
It’s recommended across some states that training should be provided to employees at least once a year. We would agree with this timeframe, and think it’s important that this kind of training is delivered regularly. Over a year, a business will likely have hired new employees who haven’t had the training before, and lots of continuing workers will be keen to get a reminder of the information they need to stay safe in the workplace.
Quite a few states dictate how often sexual harassment courses should take place, and will hand out fines and take legal action against businesses who don’t comply. Sexual harassment training material isn’t expensive, and there are plenty of companies out there who offer affordable training.
What does the law say?
The laws around workplace harassment education differ across states. The list below shows which states require sexual harassment courses to be held, and how often they should be undertaken:
- Illinois - Once a year
- Connecticut - 2 hours for all new employees
- New York - Once a year
- California - Every 2 years
- Delaware - Every 2 years
- Maine - Full training for all employees within their first year
Many states are likely to follow suit with requiring regular sexual harassment and workplace violence training, so as an employer it’s best to get a good system set up before they do. Have a look at the sexual harassment training requirements if you are unsure what you need to provide.
How often will I receive training?
As we outlined above, how often you receive safety training as an employee will depend on the state that your business is based in. This isn’t always the case though, as some businesses will like to offer the courses much more regularly than the local laws recommend.
What will the training cover?
There are few things that sexual harassment prevention training will usually cover. It will go into what sexual harassment is and how you can recognize it. There will also be sections that relate specifically to the work environment, that will delve into topics such as abuse of power, danger zone behaviors, and how employers can promote a positive workplace.
The other parts of the course will most likely focus on harassment policies, the responsibilities as an employee, and how to safely make a complaint about sexual harassment. The courses are often completed via online training videos.
