Wow!! What a busy week in the Capitol regarding sexual harassment prevention bills. On the heels of the #MeToo movement and #WeSaidEnough, the legislature is finding ways to implement new rules and regulations for employers. Between training, document retention, statute of limitations, arbitration, confidentiality and even finding ways to sue employers for harassment or discrimination that didn’t actually occur, sexual harassment is the hot topic of this week, and the year.
There were eight different bills heard in various committees regarding sexual harassment this last week alone:
- SB 1038 – Personal Liability for Retaliation
- SB 1300 – Legal Standing and Release of Claims
- SB 1343 – Training for All Employees
- AB 1867 – Complaint Document Retention
- AB 1870 – Extension of the Statute of Limitations
- AB 2338 – Training for Talent Agencies
- AB 3080 – Arbitration Agreements
- AB 3081 – Omnibus Sexual Harassment Bill
Each one was approved by the corresponding committee and will either head to the Appropriations Committee or to the floor. One thing is for sure, regardless of party lines and regardless of the subject of the legislation itself, if sexual harassment is mentioned in the bill, it is sure to fly out of committee.