3 Things to Keep You Up at Night: Strategies to Protect You and Your Business from Significant Employment Headaches

April 16, 2019

Contractors face an increasing maze of employment laws, rules, and regulations. As the weather turns warmer and the days grow longer, it is a great time to review your business practices in three key areas to avoid litigation.

First, adopt a written sexual harassment policy and make sure your employees attend mandatory training. You have probably attended a breakfast briefing or received an email reminding you that New York has adopted new laws requiring written sexual harassment policies and mandatory interactive training for all employees on an annual basis. Not only must policies prohibit sexual harassment, they must also provide:

• Examples of inappropriate conduct,
• Refer to state and local laws,
• List available remedies,
• Identify administrative and judicial complaint options;
• Commit to timely investigations; and
• Provide a written complaint form.

In addition, New York employees must complete annual, interactive harassment prevention training. While classroom seminars will satisfy the training mandate, webinars and computer-based training programs are acceptable so long as they are interactive. Finally, while the new law is limited to sexual harassment, adopt a policy that prohibits all forms of unlawful harassment, including harassment based on race, color, creed, religion, gender, sexual orientation, marital status, national origin, age, disability or other protected status.

If you have questions concerning these or other employment laws impacting your business, contact Domenique Camacho Moran at dmoran@FarrellFritz.com.

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