Georgia State Sexual Harassment Training Requirements

Georgia State employees and managers however, must receive sexual harassment training with 30 days of being hired, and manger must receive training within 30 days of being promoted. Read more about state sexual harassment reforms at AJC News.

The Equal Employment Division of the Commission enforces the Georgia Fair Employment Act of 1978, which makes it illegal for a state agency to discriminate based on race, sex, age, disability, or national origin. This includes making sexual harassment unlawful. They encourage discrimination training for state employees in order to avoid to reduce sexual harassment and lawsuits by the EEOC. Learn more from Georgia Commission of Equal Opportunity.

The EEOC is the federal governing body that describes and enforces sexual harassment and discrimination laws. Read more at (EEOC Harassment). According to the EEOC sexual harassment and other forms of employment discrimination violate Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, (ADEA), and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, (ADA). 

The EEOC found that in 2018, 31.8% of the 4,919 workplace discrimination charges filed in Georgia were related to sexual harassment. These 1,566 charges made up 6.4% of all sexual harassment charges filed in the US that year.

Even if Georgia does not require formal training for have official state laws against sexual harassment, lawsuits can still be brought agains employers by the EEOC. In 2019, employer was made to pay a $50,000 settlement to two female workers who were sexually harassed and then fired when they reported it to the owner. The employer was put under a consent decree in which they were required to provide sexual harassment training and retaliation training to all employees at its stores and corporate office. 

Workplace sexual harassment training can help lower the number of sexual harassment charges, raise awareness, and reduce liability to the employer.

There are a number of steps the EEOC recommends that employers take to reduce their chances of liability for sexual harassment claims.

1. Implementing a strong and well understood sexual harassment policy.
2. Providing a robust sexual harassment training program for training employees and supervisors.
3. Establishing an effective complaint and grievance process, within which the employees do not have to fear retaliation.
4. An employer should act Immediately to investigate any complaint or grievance.
5. The employer should take immediate steps such as disciplinary action to stop harassment.
6. Employees should be encouraged to confront the harasser directly and inform them that the conduct is inappropriate as well as informing management and Human Resources

Sexual Harassment Training Tip: Prevention is the BEST tool.

By ensuring that employees understand and are well trained in workplace sexual harassment policies, employers can greatly reduce their chances of being liable for monetary damages in sexual harassment cases.