California’s state and federal laws require employers to take “reasonable care” to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace. Employers can meet the legal requirements for harassment prevention compliance by providing sexual harassment training for all employees; by posting a clear, definitive statement that sexual harassment is against the law and including sexual harassment information in their company policies. Avoiding sexual harassment in the workplace can be as simple as teaching employees the definition of sexual harassment, training them to create a harassment-free workplace and displaying a sexual harassment poster clearly stating the business’ position.
The sexual harassment poster provides employees with a definition of what constitutes sexual harassment, describes what action to take in the event sexual harassment occurs and provides the company contact to which sexual harassment should be reported. All employers must do their part to prevent sexual harassment from occurring in the workplace in accordance with state, federal, and local laws. This responsibility includes implementing and enforcing a written policy addressing workplace harassment. State and federal laws require that employers must provide information to their employees, applicants, and vendors regarding harassment in the workplace. Failure to comply with posting requirements can result in costly lawsuits in terms of legal fees and any awarded damages.
Claims of workplace harassment are one of the most common types of complaints filed with state and federal agencies. Some court decisions indicate that employers may be held responsible even if they were unaware the harassment was taking place. The best defense against workplace harassment is to post the required sexual harassment notices in a place that everyone can see them and educate employees about this all-too common problem. A sexual harassment poster will assist in helping a company avoids costly fines and expensive employee-driven lawsuits.
