Dear Victoria,

Since January 1, 2006 all California employers with 50 employees or more are required to provide two hours of sexual harassment prevention training for their supervisors. But what about employers who have less than 50 employees?

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Yes, AB 1825 does require employers with 50 or more employees to carry out supervisor training; however, it does set a standard which all California employers should not ignore. California's FEHA (Fair Employment and Housing Act) requires employers with as few as five employees to avoid discrimination based on sex, including sexual harassment. Not providing training to your supervisors may be regarded by the courts or by a jury as failure to take reasonable steps to protect your employees from harassment, and the consequences for failing to provide training can be severe.

Training should cover common problems

encountered by today's small businesses. For example, it should explain what to do if an employee confides in a supervisor "as a friend", asking that the matter be kept confidential. Remember, once the supervisor receives notice of potential harassment even through an informal conversation, he or she is obligated to do something about it. That an employee shares an issue "confidentially" does not excuse your duty as the employer to correct illegal discrimination or harassment.

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In a similar situation, a trained supervisor would tell the employee that he'd be happy to listen, but if the employee shares an issue that involves company policy, he may be obligated to act. Too often we see supervisors that don't know how to handle this kind of situation and don't know the legal risk it creates.

Many small businesses operate more casually, based on personal relationships rather than infrastructure and policies. As this may work for some employers, your supervisors should be trained to recognize when they need to get formal and document what they've done.

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No matter the size of your company, you're under a legal obligation to avoid sexual harassment.

Investing in the basics could help you avoid a punitive damage award you did not see coming. As reported in the recent ELIN Newsletter, the costs to defend discrimination and harassment cases soared from $100,000 to $700,000 in legal fees alone, not counting awarded damages.

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Contact McCabe Consultants today at 818-704-7838 to schedule your Sexual Harassment Prevention Training.

Warm Regards,

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The Team at McCabe Consultants

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~email: victoria@mccabeconsultants.comphone: (818) 704 - 7838web: http://www.mccabeconsultants.com