When Your Employer Ignores Mandatory Training: Understanding Your Rights with a Sexual Harassment Lawyer in Los Angeles
If you’ve experienced sexual harassment at work and discovered your employer never provided the required training, you’re facing a double violation of your rights. California law mandates that employers with five or more employees must provide sexual harassment prevention training to all workers every two years—one hour for nonsupervisory employees and two hours for supervisory employees. When companies skip this crucial training, they not only break the law but also create environments where harassment can flourish unchecked. As a sexual harassment lawyer in Los Angeles can explain, this failure dramatically strengthens your potential claim and exposes employers to significant liability.
💡 Pro Tip: Request your training records from HR immediately—if they can’t produce certificates showing you received proper training within required timeframes, document this in writing.
Don’t let your rights slip through the cracks when it comes to workplace safety. If your employer has skipped mandatory training, it’s time to make a move. Discover how MSD Lawyers can hold them accountable by reaching out at 213-401-0823 or contact us today.
California’s Strict Training Requirements and Your Legal Protections
Under California Government Code Section 12950.1, employers must provide comprehensive sexual harassment training that includes definitions of abusive conduct, sexual harassment, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, and other protected bases under the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA). A sexual harassment lawyer in Los Angeles will tell you that failure to provide this training could expose an employer to enforcement action by the California Civil Rights Department and increased liability for any harassment claims brought by an employee. The training must also include harassment based on gender identity, gender expression, and sexual orientation with practical examples.
The California Civil Rights Department, established by the Legislature in 1959 and becoming an independent department in 1980, is the state agency charged with enforcing California’s civil rights laws and is the largest state civil rights agency in the country. They provide free online sexual harassment prevention training in multiple languages including English, Spanish, Korean, Chinese, Vietnamese, and Tagalog. Despite this readily available resource, many employers still fail to meet their obligations.
💡 Pro Tip: Check if your employer documented training completion—employers must keep records of all trainings for at least 2 years, including names of participants, dates of training, and copies of training materials.
Critical Deadlines: From Training Requirements to Filing Your Complaint
Understanding the timeline for both training requirements and complaint filing is crucial when working with a sexual harassment lawyer in Los Angeles. The law sets specific deadlines that employers must meet and that victims must follow to protect their rights.
- New employees must be trained within 6 months of hire—if you’ve been employed longer without training, your employer is already in violation
- New supervisors must be trained within 6 months of assuming a supervisory position, ensuring they understand their obligation to report harassing, discriminatory, or retaliatory behavior
- Seasonal and temporary employees hired to work less than 6 months must be trained within 30 calendar days after hire or within 100 hours worked, whichever occurs first
- All employees must receive refresher training once every two years, with specific tracking requirements
- A complaint of employment discrimination must be filed within one year from the date that the alleged discriminatory act occurred—missing this deadline can bar your claim entirely
- The Department has up to one year from the date a complaint is filed to complete an investigation and file a complaint in civil court if justified
💡 Pro Tip: Mark your calendar immediately after any incident—the one-year filing deadline runs quickly, and delays can jeopardize your entire case.
Taking Action: How MSD Lawyers Helps Victims of Workplace Harassment
When employers fail to meet California sexual harassment training requirements, they’ve already shown disregard for employee safety and legal compliance. At MSD Lawyers, we understand that this training failure often signals deeper problems—companies that skip mandatory training frequently have inadequate reporting procedures, ineffective investigations, and cultures that tolerate harassment. A sexual harassment lawyer in Los Angeles from our firm will thoroughly investigate whether your employer met all training obligations, as this evidence significantly strengthens your case.
If a court finds an employer failed to comply with Government Code section 12950.1, it may issue an order requiring compliance and potentially award additional damages. Our team documents every training violation while building your harassment claim, using the employer’s negligence to demonstrate their liability for the hostile work environment you endured.
💡 Pro Tip: Save any emails or documents showing you requested training or reported the lack of training—this proactive stance strengthens your credibility and claim.
The Real Cost of Skipped Training: Increased Liability and Workplace Harm
Employers who skip California sexual harassment training requirements face consequences beyond just regulatory violations. The training content specifically addresses prevention of abusive conduct, defined as malicious workplace conduct that a reasonable person would find hostile, offensive, and unrelated to legitimate business interests. Without this education, employees and managers lack crucial knowledge about what constitutes harassment and how to prevent it.
Understanding Abusive Conduct in the Workplace
The required training explains that abusive conduct may include repeated infliction of verbal abuse, such as the use of derogatory remarks, insults, and epithets, verbal or physical conduct that a reasonable person would find threatening, intimidating, or humiliating, or the gratuitous sabotage or undermining of a person’s work performance. Importantly, a single act does not constitute abusive conduct unless it is especially severe and egregious. When employers fail to educate their workforce about these distinctions, they create confusion that allows harassment to escalate.
💡 Pro Tip: Document patterns of behavior—while single incidents may not qualify as abusive conduct, repeated actions create a stronger case for harassment claims.
Economic and Emotional Consequences of Harassment in Untrained Workplaces
The training mandated by California law explains the negative effects that abusive conduct has on the victim of the conduct as well as others in the workplace, including information about the detrimental consequences on employers—such as reduction in productivity and morale. When speaking with a sexual harassment lawyer in Los Angeles, victims often report that harassment in workplaces without proper training tends to be more severe and prolonged because perpetrators don’t understand boundaries and bystanders don’t know how to respond.
The Ripple Effect on Workplace Culture
Without proper training, toxic behaviors spread throughout organizations. Employees who witness harassment but never received training may not recognize their obligation to report it or understand how to support victims. This creates an environment where harassment becomes normalized, leading to higher turnover, decreased productivity, and a culture of fear that affects everyone—not just direct victims.
💡 Pro Tip: Note how harassment affected your work performance and document any complaints from colleagues about the hostile environment—this demonstrates the broader workplace impact.
Frequently Asked Questions
Legal Rights When Employers Skip Training
Many employees don’t realize their employer’s training failures create additional legal remedies beyond the harassment itself. Understanding these rights helps you make informed decisions about pursuing claims.
💡 Pro Tip: Ask your sexual harassment lawyer in Los Angeles specifically about how training violations strengthen your case—this violation often leads to enhanced damages.
Next Steps After Discovering Training Violations
Once you discover your employer failed to provide required training, swift action protects your rights and preserves evidence. The one-year filing deadline means every day counts.
💡 Pro Tip: Request all employment records immediately, including training logs, employee handbooks, and any harassment policies—employers must provide these upon request.
1. What happens if my employer claims they provided training but has no records?
Employers must keep training records for at least two years, including names, dates, sign-in sheets, certificates, materials, and trainer names. Without these records, they cannot prove compliance with California sexual harassment training requirements, strengthening your claim that training never occurred.
2. Can I file a complaint based solely on lack of training, even without experiencing harassment?
Yes, the California Civil Rights Department can investigate training violations independently. However, a sexual harassment lawyer in Los Angeles typically combines training failures with harassment claims for maximum impact and compensation.
3. Do small Los Angeles businesses with exactly 5 employees have different requirements?
No, once an employer reaches five employees, full training requirements apply. This includes businesses in Los Angeles County Courthouse vicinity or anywhere in California—the law makes no exceptions for company size above the threshold.
4. What if I was hired as a temporary worker and never received training?
Seasonal and temporary employees must receive training within 30 calendar days or 100 hours worked, whichever comes first. Your employer cannot claim your temporary status excused their training obligations.
5. How do California’s training requirements differ from federal laws?
California’s requirements are much stricter than federal law, which doesn’t mandate sexual harassment training. Our state requires specific content, regular intervals, and documentation that gives employees in the Greater Los Angeles area stronger protections than most other states.
Work with a Trusted Sexual Harassment Lawyer
When employers ignore mandatory sexual harassment training, they’ve already shown disregard for your safety and rights. Whether you work near downtown’s financial district or elsewhere in Los Angeles, the law protects you equally. Choosing experienced legal representation ensures your employer faces accountability for both their training failures and any harassment you’ve endured. At the end of proper training, participants receive a certificate of completion that can be saved, printed, or photographed for employer records—if you never received this certificate, you have evidence of your employer’s violation. CRD anticipates updating these trainings periodically to account for legal and policy developments, meaning employers have no excuse for outdated or missing training programs.
Stand up for your rights and ensure your workplace is safe and compliant. If your Los Angeles employer fails to provide mandatory training, it’s time to take the reins. Contact MSD Lawyers at 213-401-0823 or contact us to explore your options today.
