Provide Scheduled Employment Practices Training

Employment Practices Liability (EPL) is a fast growing area of exposure in frequency and severity of lawsuits.  One out of five cases in our court system today is an employment/personnel-related lawsuit.  These claims include, but are not limited to:

• Wrongful Dismissal/Termination
• Sexual Harassment
• Discrimination (sex/gender, race color, national origin, religion, disability, age, veteran status, and other protected classes according to federal, state and local laws)
• Retaliation
• Negligent Supervision

Your organization can avoid liability for employment practices by taking proactive measures to develop policies and educate employees to promptly correct any workplace wrongdoing.  Thus, the burden falls on your organization to produce hard evidence that it has taken actions to protect its workers and provide a safe and healthy work environment. 

VFIS recommends for your organization adopt a program to include ongoing employment practices training. A full review of the Employee Handbook is not the intent of this recommendation. The intent is to identify key topics that are “hot button” issues relevant to today’s work environment. Areas to consider include:

• Sexual Harassment
• Social Medial Policies
• Management/Supervision Training

Also, your organization’s management liability attorney should review your policies and training programs to assure your organization has taken proactive steps by demonstrating that written policies, procedures and training programs exist.

VFIS has training programs available to address the needs of the employment practices training. The Respectful Workplace Program is a two part video, one for supervisors/managers and the other for all employees/volunteers. These provide a mechanism for Human Resources and training staff to define what harassment is, give examples of undesirable behaviors and what “crosses the line,” and identify the channels for reporting harassing behavior.  

Respectful Workplace

• Respectful Workplace Harassment Prevention Training for Managers - Online
• Respectful Workplace Harassment Prevention Training for Employees - Online
• The Respectful Workplace

Available Resources

• Social Media Issues-Concerns-Remedies for Fire and EMS
• Social Media
• Rightful Personnel Terminations
• Retaliation and Wrongful Termination- Links to Liability
• Determining Discipline Checklist
• Determining Discipline
• Building Confidence for Discipline & Termination Decisions