Manatt, Phelps & Phillips LLP
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On April 11, 2023, Governor Kathy Hochul announced updates to New York’s Sexual
Harassment Model Policy, which were prepared by the New York State
Department of Labor (DOL) for employers to comply with state laws
protecting employees from sexual harassment in the workplace. Under
New York State law, every employer is required to adopt a sexual
harassment prevention policy—and such employers may use the
state’s model prevention policy or adopt their own policy that
meets or exceeds the state’s minimum standards.
The final Sexual Harassment Prevention Policy, online
resources and interactive
training video were compiled by the DOL, which collaborated
with the New York State Division of Human Rights to ensure
compliance with the mandatory training requirements. The policy now
addresses remote workers, gender discrimination, retaliation and
other new guidance to protect workers.
Employers are required to provide annual sexual harassment and
discrimination prevention training to their employees, and to
provide a hard copy of the policy or provide it by email to each
employee at the time of hiring and annually during training.
The Combating Sexual Harassment in the Workplace website includes the model prevention policy,
prevention training video, model prevention policy notice, model complaint form and model training, as well as an updated Frequently
Asked Questions section, new slide deck and script for employers to
use, and other resources to ensure compliance with all employee
training. DOL plans to launch a public education campaign to help
businesses and workers understand the newly strengthened
policy.
Should you have further questions related to this announcement,
please reach out to a member of the Manatt team.
Thank you.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general
guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought
about your specific circumstances.
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