Chicago Expands Bystander Intervention Training

Chicago continues to be at the forefront of combatting sexual harassment in the workplace by further expanding the existing training requirements. Chicago employers have previously been required to provide annual sexual harassment training for employees and supervisors. However, recently, Chicago has increased these requirements by adding an additional hour of "bystander intervention" training.

The Chicago Commission on Human Rights' guidance on the new requirement defines bystander intervention as "safe and positive actions that may be carried out by a person or a group of people to prevent harm or intervene where there is a risk or perceived risk of sexual harassment to another." A bystander can be anyone in the workplace who notices incidents where another person may seem uncomfortable or where the employee may determine that an observed action is inappropriate.