Sexual Harassment Training

What the training covers

Good programs go beyond definitions. Typical content:

• What sexual harassment is under federal and state law, including quid pro quo and hostile work environment harassment, with realistic examples.
• Harassment based on other protected characteristics, since the same principles apply.
• The employer's policy and every way to report, including options that bypass the direct supervisor.
• What happens after a report: investigation, confidentiality limits, outcomes.
• Protection against retaliation for reporting or taking part in an investigation.
• Bystander intervention: what a coworker can do in the moment and afterward.
• For supervisors: their duty to act on anything they see or hear, even informally, and how to escalate.

The training should match your written anti-harassment policy. Mismatches between the two are a common problem in litigation.

Federal law and why training matters even where it isn't required

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits sex-based harassment at employers with 15 or more employees, but no federal law requires harassment training for private employers. Training still matters legally. In two 1998 decisions, Faragher v. City of Boca Raton and Burlington Industries v. Ellerth, the Supreme Court set out an affirmative defense for some supervisor harassment claims: the employer exercised reasonable care to prevent and promptly correct harassment, and the employee unreasonably failed to use the complaint process. A clear policy, accessible reporting channels and regular training are central evidence of reasonable care.

The EEOC rescinded its 2024 harassment guidance in January 2026, so there is no current federal guidance on training design. Training that is regular, interactive and tailored to the specific workplace and workforce, rather than a generic module clicked through once, is still the strongest evidence of reasonable care.

State and city requirements

Several jurisdictions mandate training. The main ones, summarized:

• California: employers with 5 or more employees must provide at least 2 hours of training to supervisors and 1 hour to nonsupervisory employees every two years, and within six months of hire or promotion. Seasonal and temporary workers hired for less than six months must be trained within 30 calendar days or 100 hours worked, whichever comes first.
• New York State: all employers must provide interactive training every year that meets the state's minimum standards, alongside a written policy.
• New York City: employers with 15 or more employees must provide annual interactive training.
• Illinois: all employers must provide annual training under the Workplace Transparency Act, with extra requirements for restaurants and bars.
• Connecticut: employers with 3 or more employees must provide 2 hours of training within six months of hire.
• Delaware (50 or more employees) and Maine (15 or more) also require training for new employees.

Requirements change and details matter (content, interactivity, languages, recordkeeping), so verify current rules for each state and city where you have employees, including remote workers.

Making it work in high-volume and multi-state workforces

Employers that hire hundreds of hourly or seasonal workers a month run into practical problems: tracking six-month and 30-day deadlines per person, delivering in several languages, and proving completion for each state's standard. Practical steps:

• Assign training automatically at hire based on work location, with due dates set by that state's rule.
• Offer it in the languages your workforce speaks; several states require or provide materials in multiple languages.
• Pay for the time. For non-exempt employees, required training is generally compensable work time under the FLSA.
• Keep completion records, certificates and content versions for several years. Treat it like any other compliance training with an audit trail.
• Remember staffing arrangements: for temp workers, agree with your agency in writing who trains whom.

What makes training effective

Research and enforcement experience point to the same lessons: training on its own doesn't prevent harassment if leaders tolerate it, but training combined with visible leadership commitment, responsive reporting and consistent consequences does. Use scenarios from your own environment (a warehouse, a restaurant, a contact-center floor), include supervisors' real responsibilities, and allow questions to a live person. Short annual refreshers beat a long session every few years.

Our workplace harassment entry covers the legal definitions and investigation process in more depth.

Common mistakes

• A generic video that doesn't match your policy or reporting channels.
• Missing new hires because training is scheduled only once a year.
• Same content for supervisors and staff, when supervisors have distinct obligations.
• No records, making it impossible to prove training happened.
• Treating it as a box to tick while complaints go uninvestigated.