Required Trainings- WVPP and Harassment Prevention
California law requires that all employers of 5 or more employees provide 1 hour of sexual harassment and abusive conduct prevention training to nonsupervisory employees, and 2 hours of sexual harassment and abusive conduct prevention training to supervisory employees, every two years.
The Civil Rights Department (CRD) offers free online trainings that satisfy these requirements – one for supervisors and one for non-supervisors. Both trainings are available in Chinese, English, Korean, Spanish, Tagalog, and Vietnamese (CLICK HERE TO ACCESS THE TRAININGS). The law requires CRD to produce and post both training courses to its website, which employers may use instead of hiring a trainer. An employer is required to train its California-based employees so long as it employs 5 or more employees anywhere, even if they do not work at the same location and even if not all of them work or reside in California.
- Why is this training required? California takes sexual harassment very seriously, and it is against the law. Despite greater awareness of sexual harassment and its harms, many workers are still subjected to harassment because of their sex or other protected characteristic. These trainings are legally required and designed to educate or remind everyone about what is – and is not – acceptable behavior in the workplace.
- Must I be trained? If your employer has 5 or more employees, you must be trained, though the duration of your training will differ depending on your position. Nonsupervisory employees must receive 1 hour of sexual harassment and abusive conduct prevention training and supervisory employees must receive 2 hours of sexual harassment and abusive conduct prevention training.
- How often must I be trained? You must satisfy the training requirement every two years.
- By what date must I be trained? There are different timelines and training requirements for employees in supervisory and nonsupervisory positions, which your employer will go over. Employees must be retrained every two years.
Required WVPP Employee Training:
General Requirements
The trainer must be someone that is knowledgeable in the employer’s specific WVPP. The training must be customized to the employer’s workplace/hazards, and it must be interactive and allow for employee questions and answers by someone knowledgeable in the employer’s plan.
Employers must use training material appropriate in content and vocabulary to the educational level, literacy, and language of employees. Employers must retain specified training records for at least one year, as outlined in Labor Code section 6401.9.
Employee training must be provided when the WVPP is first established (i.e., initially by July 1, 2024), upon identification of new hazards or plan changes, and on an annual basis.
Covered Topics
The training must cover the definitions in Labor Code section 6401.9 (i.e., SB 553), as well as:
• The employer’s WVPP, how to obtain a copy of the employer’s plan at no cost, and how to participate in the development and implementation of the employer’s plan.
• How to report workplace violence incidents or concerns to the employer or law enforcement without fear of reprisal.
• Workplace violence hazards specific to the employees’ jobs, the corrective measures the employer has implemented, how to seek assistance to prevent or respond to violence, and strategies to avoid physical harm.
• The violent incident log and how to obtain copies of records pertaining to hazard identification, evaluation and correction, training records, and violent incident logs.
The training may also, but is not required to cover, the following: strategies to avoid/reduce workplace violence, including risk factors and defusing hostile situations, recognizing alerts, alarms and other warnings, escape routes, emergency medical care, and post-event trauma counseling available to employees.
For more resources and information regarding harassment training requirements, please visit the State of California Civil Rights Department website here to read the full FAQs: Sexual Harassment Prevention Training For Employees
For a more in depth breakdown on the Workplace Violence Prevention Program, please visit the State of California Department of Industrial Relations website here: Cal/OSHA Workplace Violence Prevention for General Industry (Non-Health Care Settings)
If you have any questions or need help establishing training programs for these requirements, give FLORES a call. Contact us at (619) 588-2411.