Question: I have five staff members in my medical practice and I read somewhere that California now requires sexual harassment prevention training for employees. Does my office need to meet this requirement or does this not apply to small businesses?
Answer: The short answer is yes, your office does need to comply with this requirement. California employers with five or more employees are required to provide sexual harassment prevention training to all employees by January 1, 2021. CAP recommends that your practice train your employees now and not wait until the end of 2020.
On August 30, 2019, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed SB 778 into law, which extended the training deadline from January 1, 2020 to January 1, 2021. All employees who have been hired or employees who have been promoted to supervisor positions since September 2018 must be trained within six months of hire or promotion. SB 778 does not change this requirement.
Did you know that CAP offers free online courses that fulfill this requirement? As part of your membership, you receive access to courses for both supervisory and non-supervisory employees through Kantola Training Solutions. You and your staff may access these courses by completing the form on CAPphysicians.com/hrtraining.
If you have questions regarding any HR issues, please contact Leilani Ligans, CAP’s Vice President of Human Resources and Operations, at 213-473-8695 during business hours, 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Andie Tena is CAP’s Director of Practice Management Services. Questions or comments should be directed to atena@CAPphysicians.com.