BILL ANALYSIS
AB 1825
Page 1
CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB 1825 (Reyes)
As Amended June 16, 2004
Majority vote
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|ASSEMBLY: |50-28|(May 25, 2004) |SENATE: |21-12|(August 18, |
| | | | | |2004) |
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Original Committee Reference: L. & E.
SUMMARY : Requires specified employers to provide training on
sexual harassment.
The Senate amendments require each employer to provide sexual
harassment training and education to each supervisory employee
once every two years, after January 1, 2006.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Makes certain specified employment practices unlawful,
including the harassment of an employee directly by the
employer or indirectly by agents of the employer with the
employer's knowledge.
2)Requires every employer to act to ensure a workplace free of
sexual harassment by implementing certain minimum
requirements, including posting sexual harassment information
posters at the workplace and obtaining and making available an
information sheet on sexual harassment.
3)Requires each state supervisorial employee, upon the
employee's initial appointment to a designated supervisory
position, be provided a minimum of 80 hours of training.
AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY , this bill:
1)Required employers with 50 or more employees to provide two
hours of training and education to all supervisory employees
within one year of January 1, 2005, unless the employer has
provided sexual harassment training and education to employees
after January 1, 2003.
2)Provided that a claim that the training and education did not
AB 1825
Page 2
reach a particular individual does not automatically result in
the liability of an employer for sexual harassment.
3)Provided that an employer's compliance with the training
requirement does not insulate the employer from liability for
sexual harassment of any current or former employee or
applicant.
4)Required the state to incorporate the required training into
the 80 hours of training provided to all supervisory employees
pursuant to existing law.
5)Specified that this bill establishes a minimum threshold for
training and education and that employers may provide training
and education beyond that required by the statute to prevent
and correct sexual harassment and discrimination.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Senate Appropriations Committee
analysis, the Department of Personnel Administration has
indicated that the state employs 25,000 supervisors and 500
managers and bases its costs estimates, of $750,000 to
$1,000,000 annually beginning 2005-06, on between 50,000 and
60,000 staff hours being needed to provide the required training
to state employees.
COMMENTS : The Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) primarily
covers sexual harassment in state law. FEHA is enforced by the
Fair Employment and Housing Commission. FEHA defines sexual
harassment to include, verbal harassment, physical harassment,
and visual harassment. Unwelcome sexual advances toward an
employee of the same sex and harassment on the basis on
pregnancy disability are both considered unlawful sexual
harassment under FEHA.
It should be noted that employers may be held liable for sexual
harassment of a subordinate by a supervisor, as well as
harassment between co-workers. Recent legislation also provides
that employers may potentially be liable for sexual harassment
committed against their workers by clients, customers and other
third parties.
The author argues that, even with current laws to prevent sexual
harassment, during the 2002-03 fiscal year, 4,231 sexual
harassment cases were filed with the Department of Fair
Employment and Housing (DFEH), totaling 22% of all cases filed
AB 1825
Page 3
at DFEH. The impact of sexual harassment on businesses is
significant. Harassment costs the average Fortune 500 company
$6.7 million per year in indirect costs alone.
This bill, modeled on a Connecticut statute, would require large
employers to provide at least two hours of sexual harassment
training to supervisory employees. Supporters contend that
sexual harassment in the workplace remains a major problem and
that this bill represents a pro-active approach to reducing
sexual harassment
Other legislation: AB 2889 (Laird) of 2004, makes employers
responsible for the acts of non-employees with respect to all
forms of harassment in the workplace where the employer or its
agents or supervisors knew or should have known of the conduct
and failed to take immediate and appropriate corrective action.
AB 76 (Corbett), Statutes of 2003, Chapter 671, amends FEHA to
prohibit sexual harassment of an employee in the workplace by a
person other than an employee, agent, or supervisor of the
employer.
Analysis Prepared by : Nick Louizos / L. & E. / (916) 319-2091
FN: 0007781