Sexual Harassment Prevention Training For Farm Workers SB 295 (Monning)
CRLAF sponsors SB 295 (Monning), which calls for greater transparency in the sexual harassment prevention training required for farm workers by SB 1087 (Monning; 2014) and also addresses recent concerns about non-compliance by some farm labor contractors (FLCs).
Background: CRLAF sponsored SB 1087 in response to farm worker lawsuits and administrative claims that revealed shocking instances of sexual harassment, including rape, against undocumented farm worker women, that also drew significant media attention. (See ‘Rape In the Fields’ (2013) NPR/Frontline/Center for Investigative Reporting)
SB 1087 attacked this widespread culture of sexual harassment of farm worker women through a combination of mandatory sexual harassment prevention training of FLCs and their supervisors, and by training of farm workers in how to prevent, identify and report sexual harassment.
SB 295 brings greater transparency to the sexual harassment training being given by FLCs in two ways.
First, by requiring FLCs to disclose annually to the Labor Commissioner the materials they’re using to train workers in sexual harassment prevention. While it seems clear from the survey results that some FLCs appear to be allocating sufficient time to provide adequate training, no one really knows that since FLCs are not required to disclose to the Labor Commissioner the materials and resources they utilized.
Second, by requiring FLCs to report to the Labor Commissioner the total number of farm workers they have trained in the previous calendar year, and by requiring her to aggregate that number each year and publish a statewide total on her web site.
