Harassment and Discrimination Prevention Training: What the Law Requires

[Leaving employees] in ignorance of the basic features of the discrimination laws is an extraordinary mistake for a company to make, and such an extraordinary mistake amounts to reckless indifference.1

For years, many employers have periodically trained their employees on how to prevent sexual harassment and other forms of workplace discrimination. Employers viewed the training as beneficial to promote a positive workplace, but did not necessarily view the training as an absolute requirement. However, since the U.S. Supreme Court issued three landmark rulings in 1998 and 1999, harassment and discrimination prevention training is no longer a luxury. Instead, the Supreme Court, lower federal and state courts, and federal and state guidelines have made it clear that employers should periodically provide this training to each employee.

Part I of this article examines how employers who fail to provide harassment and discrimination prevention training may:

* Expose themselves to punitive damages.

* Lose their ability to raise a defense to harassment lawsuits.

Contradict federal guidelines established by the EEOC.

* Contradict state laws and guidelines.

Part II examines the return on investment of providing harassment and discrimination prevention training. As discussed in further detail in this section, the number of harassment and discrimination cases filed per year between 1990 and 2000 tripled. At the same time, the cost of resolving a single claim-which includes verdict or settlement costs, attorneys' fees, and the cost of employee time responding to the claim-routinely costs an employer hundreds of thousands of dollars. Given that research indicates that effective harassment and discrimination prevention training greatly reduces the number of internal complaints and ext...

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