Since 2004, California law has required that companies with 50 or more employees (regardless of where the employees are located) provide anti-harassment training for all California supervisors.[i] Training must be provided within six months of a supervisor’s being hired or promoted into the position, and every two years thereafter. Training must be two hours long and, although it does not have to be in person, it must be interactive.

The list of topics that the training must cover has been expanded several times over the years (as recently as 2018), by both legislative and regulatory action.[ii] A few examples of what must be covered under current rules are:

  • The “definition of unlawful sexual harassment” under both state and federal law.
  • “Case law principles” concerning harassment and retaliation.
  • The “limited confidentiality” of the complaint process.
  • What to do if the “supervisor is personally accused of harassment.”
  • “Abusive conduct” (aka bullying) and its negative consequences in the workplace.
  • “Gender identify, gender expression and sexual orientation” harassment.