Delaware Expands Protections Against Sexual Harassment in the Workplace and Requires Training
September 04, 2018
Delaware Governor John Carney has signed into law House Bill 360. The new law broadens the categories of workers covered by the Delaware Discrimination in Employment Act's sexual harassment provisions to include job applicants, joint employees, apprentices, unpaid interns, and individuals who work for employment agencies. The law also requires the Delaware Department of Labor to create an informational sheet on sexual harassment that employers will be required to distribute to employees. Additionally, employers with 50 or more employees in the state must provide interactive sexual harassment training every two years. SESCO can provide training resources to ensure each employer is compliant.
New employees must be provided training within a year after hire or within a year of being promoted to a supervisory position. Current employees must receive training in 2019. This law comes as many other states have passed or are considering additional legislation aimed at curtailing sexual harassment in the workplace. For example, with Delaware's action,sexual harassment training now is required in five states: Delaware,New York, California, Maine, and Connecticut, with a similar requirement pending in the Pennsylvania legislature.
