Sexual Harassment Training May Soon Be Mandatory For NYC Workers

NEW YORK CITY HALL — New York City may soon mandate sexual harassment training for many public and private workers under a package of legislation the City Council passed Wednesday. Two of 11 bills in the "Stop Sexual Harassment in NYC Act" would require city agencies and offices, as well as private companies with at least 15 employees, to put their workers through anti-harassment training every year.

A slate of Democratic lawmakers proposed the legislation earlier this year in reaction to burgeoning nationwide movements to pull back the curtain on sexual harassment and assault.

"We've taken the first baby step to righting this historical wrong, but there is more work to do," Councilwoman Helen Rosenthal (D-Manhattan) said Wednesday.

The bills aim to prevent sexual harassment in government and private workplaces, help victims report it and improve transparency on the issue from city agencies and contractors.

One of the training bills would have a big impact on the city's private sector. It would require every employee at qualifying firms to go through yearly "interactive" training that addresses what sexual harassment is and how to file complaints.

Every new hire would get trained within 90 days of coming on board under the law, which would apply to any employee who works at least 80 hours a year, including interns, managers and supervisors.

The bill would direct the city's Commission on Human Rights to create an online training program that employers could use to comply with the law. The legislation would take effect in April 2019 if Mayor Bill de Blasio signs it.

Another bill would force all city agencies, along with the offices of the borough presidents, city comptroller and public advocate, to put their employees through similar training each year. The Department of Citywide Administrative Services would track which agencies are following the law and issue an annual report on compliance.

Other legislation passed Wednesday aims to help New Yorkers better understand how to report sexual harassment.

One bill would force every employer to display a poster created by the city that describes what sexual harassment is and how to file complaints local, state and federal authorities. Another would require the Commission on Human Rights to post resources about sexual harassment on its website.

The Council also wants to get a better sense of how big a problem harassment is in city government. One approved bill would require city agencies to report sexual harassment complaints to the Department of Citywide Administrative Services, which would compile an annual report on how many were filed and reached certain outcomes.

"I don’t even know if these numbers are being tracked right now, which is part of the problem," Speaker Corey Johnson (D-Manhattan) said at a Wednesday news conference.

Members of the Council — on which women hold just 11 of 51 seats — cast the bills as proof that they're at the forefront of the still-growing #MeToo and #TimesUp movements against sexual violence.

The legislation, though, came after a committee forced Councilman Andy King to undergo sensitivity training after he sexually harassed a staffer. King still holds his seat and is chair of the Committee on Juvenile Justice.

Johnson defended the sanction, saying the committee handled the matter "in a very serious, earnest way." Its members consulted attorneys and interviewed several people in the process, he said. But his spokeswoman declined to say whether the staffer who complained about King was involved when the committee determined his punishment.

(Lead image: Photo by FabrikaSimf/Shutterstock)