HR & Payroll

Overview:

A new law signed by President Biden brings significant changes to employers’ ability to require arbitration of certain disputes with employees and could lead to an increase in sexual assault and sexual harassment claims against employers in court. On March 3, 2022, President Biden signed into law the “Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021” (the “Act”). The Act amends the Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”) to provide that predispute arbitration agreements and predispute joint-action waivers relating to sexual assault and sexual harassment disputes are unenforceable at the election of the person or class representative alleging the conduct. The Act took effect immediately upon signing.

Further, it prevents employers from requiring that employees waive their rights to pursue workplace sexual assault and harassment claims as class actions. Accordingly, the Act removes significant barriers that employees may face to pursuing claims of workplace sexual harassment or assault in court.

Session Highlight:

·       Learn what is included in the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021 (the Act)

·       Learn why this law was proposed and what is does to victims of sexual assault and sexual harassment

·       What do Employers have to do to stay compliant with the new law

·       What policy changes need to be made?

·       What is the definition of arbitration agreements when it comes to sexual harassment?

·       Learn how sexual harassment training is impacted by the law

·       Learn what the key factors are when developing any employee contract involving waivers to the law

·       Learn why the law may not cover retaliation claims

·       Learn how employees impacted have more leverage when Employers create agreements

·       Learn what types of claims are exempt from the law

·       Learn which states have similar regulations and how far do they go

·       Learn how the court cases will handle these claims in litigation

·       Learn what should be added to the Employee Handbook and standalone policies

Why Should You Attend:

The new Act restricts enforcement of predispute arbitration agreements and predispute joint-action waivers over “sexual assault disputes” and “sexual harassment disputes.” A “sexual assault dispute” is defined as a “dispute involving a nonconsensual sexual act or sexual contact…including when the victim lacks capacity to consent.” A “sexual harassment dispute” is a “dispute relating to conduct that is alleged to constitute sexual harassment under applicable Federal, Tribal, or State law.” The Act does not expressly cover retaliation claims.  If parties disagree as to whether the new law covers a particular dispute, the law provides that the determination is one for a federal court and not an arbitrator, regardless of whether an arbitration agreement delegates such determination to an arbitrator. This training will identify all the highlights to the new law and how Employers and professionals can mitigate the new law.

Benefits For Attending:

This training will provide you overall information regarding the sexual harassment new law, changes and how employers or professionals can. In addition, each training I offer free customized compliance tools for all attendees. Also get:

·       SHRM Recertification & HRCI PDU Credits

·       Free customized compliance tools in the form of guides, templates, policies, toolkits, and free EEO-1 tools to help employers

·       Additional HR Compliance Supplemental Slides

·       Free answer to all questions even after the training ends

Who Should Attend:

·       All Employers

·       Business Owners

·       Company Leadership

·       Compliance Professionals

·       HR Professionals

·       Managers/Supervisors/Administrators

·       Employers in all industries

·       Office Managers

Ask your question directly from our expert during the Q&A session following the live event.