The Connecticut Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities (CHRO) recently extended the deadline for employers to complete sexual harassment training as required under the Time’s Up Act (the Act). Employers are not required to request this extension; it is a blanket extension to April 19, 2021*.
The Act, which went into effect on Oct. 1, 2019, established new rules and requirements for sexual harassment training. Previously, only employers with 50 or more employees were required to provide sexual harassment training to supervisory employees. Under the new requirements, employers with three or more employees were required to provide all employees hired on or after Oct. 1, 2019, with two hours of training within six months of their hire date, and existing employees with two hours of training by Oct. 1, 2020. The latter deadline has been extended several times due to the COVID-19 pandemic, most recently to April 19, 2021. In addition, employers with less than three employees (including individuals employed by a spouse, parent or child) were required to provide two hours of training to new supervisory employees within six months of their hire and two hours of training to existing supervisory employees by Oct. 1, 2020; the latter deadline was also extended to April 19, 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. To the extent an employee has already received training after Oct. 1, 2018, that employee will not be required to receive training again by the new deadline. However, employers must provide supplemental training not less than every 10 years. The CHRO has developed training, available on its website, for use by employers.
Given the blanket extension, Connecticut employers should make sure they comply with these training requirements by the April 19, 2021* deadline, whether by using the CHRO training materials, developing an internal training program or engaging outside counsel to provide the training.
*The CHRO recently extended the April 19, 2021 deadline to May 20, 2021.