Washington State Sexual Harassment In The Workplace Training Requirements

Washington State sexual harassment in the workplace is being tackled seriously. On May 13, 2019, Washington state enacted SB 5258, a new law regarding sexual harassment training in certain industries. The law takes effect January 1, 2020, and applies to employers in retail, the hotel, motel, security and property services contractor industries that employ at least one person.

Washington State Sexual Harassment Laws

If you are looking for a fast and easy way to get your entire company trained to comply with state laws, try EasyLlama's Washington State Harassment Training program. Our quickly accessible training videos can help you avoid any compliance fines or fees.

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Who needs to be trained?

According to Washington State sexual harassment laws, any hotel, motel, retail, or security guard entity, or property services contractor as well as managers, supervisors, and employees need to be trained. The law defines an employee as an individual employed as a janitor, security guard, hotel or motel housekeeper, or room service attendant, and who spends a majority of working hours alone, or whose primary responsibility involves working without another coworker present.

When must employees be trained?

Hotels and motels that have 60 or more rooms at their establishments are required to comply with this law no later than January 1, 2020. The rest of the affected employers under this new law must meet these requirements by January 1, 2021.

What are the minimum training requirements?

• Prevent sexual assault and sexual harassment in the workplace
• Prevent sexual discrimination in the workplace
• Educate the employer's workforce regarding protection for employees who report violations of a state or federal law, rule, or regulation
• Provide a list of resources for the employer's employees to utilize. At a minimum, the resources must include contact information of the equal employment opportunity commission, the Washington state human rights commission, and local advocacy groups focused on how to prevent sexual harassment at work and sexual assault
• Required employers must also adopt a sexual harassment policy
• Property services contractors must submit to the Department of Labor and Industries the number of managers, supervisors, and employees trained and the date of adoption of the sexual harassment policy
• Every hotel, motel, retail, or security guard entity, or property services contractor, must also provide a panic button to each employee.

EasyLlama's online sexual harassment training courses for Washington cover the required content and more. Our training also covers not just sexual harassment, but other forms of harassment, discrimination, and retaliation.