Fees & Services
Workplace Safety and Harassment
Safety, harassment prevention, and compliance for Connecticut employers and employees.
Safety and Harassment Law
Workplace safety is not limited to construction sites or heavy industry. Restaurants, offices, schools, healthcare facilities, and retail workplaces all sit under the same requirements: federal OSHA standards for private employers, Connecticut's own CONN-OSHA program for state and municipal employers, child labor restrictions, and state law mandates on sexual harassment prevention and training.
Federal OSHA retains jurisdiction over most private-sector employers in Connecticut, enforcing standards for general industry, construction, and other sectors. CONN-OSHA, within the Connecticut Department of Labor, administers the state plan for public employers and enforces occupational safety and health regulations that protect state and municipal employees. At the same time, Connecticut law restricts the employment of minors by industry, occupation, and hours, and requires working papers and compliance with both state and federal child labor rules. These obligations apply to everyday workplaces such as restaurants, offices, and retail stores, not only to hazardous environments.
Connecticut's "Time's Up Act" (P.A. 19-16) imposes sexual harassment training, posting, and notice requirements codified at CGS § 46a-54(15). Employers with three or more employees must provide two hours of training and education to each new employee within six months of hire, and provide periodic supplemental training to all supervisory and nonsupervisory employees not less than every ten years thereafter. Employers with fewer than three employees must train supervisory employees within six months of assuming a supervisory position. All covered employers must post information concerning the illegality of sexual harassment and remedies available to victims in a prominent and accessible location, and distribute that information to each new employee by electronic mail (or by a link to the CHRO's information page) within three months of the start date. The CHRO is required under CGS § 46a-56(a)(8) to develop and make available, at no cost, an online training video that satisfies the training requirement.
Sexual Harassment Training and Notice
Under CGS § 46a-54(15), Connecticut employers with three or more employees must provide two hours of sexual harassment training to each new employee within six months of hire, and provide periodic supplemental training to all employees not less than every ten years thereafter. Employers with fewer than three employees must train supervisory employees on the same schedule. The CHRO publishes a no-cost online training video that satisfies the requirement under CGS § 46a-56(a)(8), available at the CHRO Sexual Harassment Prevention Training portal. Employers must also post the statutory information in a prominent location and distribute the same information by electronic mail (or by a link to the CHRO page) to each new employee within three months of the start date. Policy materials, training records, and notice procedures should be reviewed by counsel.
How an employer investigates and responds determines how safety and harassment cases are resolved. When a safety incident or harassment complaint occurs, the quality of the employer's policies, training, and documented response becomes a dispositive issue in determining liability. Errors at this stage weaken any later defense and shape damages awards, credibility findings, and agency determinations.
For Employers
I help employers build and document workplace safety and harassment compliance programs that match their operations. This includes drafting written anti-harassment policies that meet Connecticut's notice and policy requirements, designing training plans that satisfy the Time's Up Act, and aligning internal reporting and investigation procedures with the standards CHRO, OSHA, and CONN-OSHA apply.
For safety and hazard issues, I advise on how OSHA and CONN-OSHA standards apply in practice in non-obvious settings such as restaurants and offices, including hazard identification, required postings, and response to inspections or complaints. For child labor, I help employers understand which roles minors may perform, permissible hours, and the working-papers process so that restaurants, retail operations, and other employers of youth workers remain compliant.
When a complaint or incident occurs, I guide employers through the investigation process, from initial intake and interim remedial steps to interviews and written findings. Careful documentation of what the business did and why is as important as the underlying decision. I approach these matters as legal problems, not as generic "HR compliance" projects. Many non-lawyer consulting services market workplace safety or harassment "solutions" that are, in substance, legal advice without the training, licensing, or advocacy obligations that come with a law license. That gap can leave employers liable. An attorney with experience on both sides of these disputes is positioned to design policies and responses that withstand agency review and litigation. I wrote on this distinction in The HR Compliance Trap.
For Employees
Harassment, unsafe conditions, or retaliation after you report are fact-specific. The record you build in the first weeks usually determines whether an agency or court can act on your complaint later.
I advise on what to put in writing, whom to notify under your employer's policy, and which responses matter if the matter goes to CHRO, OSHA/CONN-OSHA, or Superior Court. Contemporaneous complaints, copies of policies and training materials, and notes on what HR or management did after each report are the core of that record.
For harassment, Connecticut and federal law turn on whether the employer had notice and what it did in response. For safety, the question is often whether you used internal channels first and when a complaint to OSHA or CONN-OSHA is appropriate. I do not take every matter; if the facts or timeline do not support a claim, I say so.
Scope of Service
- Drafting and revising written workplace safety, harassment, and reporting policies written for specific employers
- Designing sexual harassment prevention training programs that satisfy Connecticut's Time's Up Act requirements and integrating CHRO materials where appropriate
- Advising on OSHA and CONN-OSHA obligations for private and public employers, including response to inspections and complaints
- Advising on child labor compliance for employers of minor workers, including permitted occupations, hours, and working-papers requirements
- Internal investigation guidance for employers in safety, harassment, and retaliation matters, including evidence collection and documentation
- Counseling employees on documenting harassment and safety concerns, and on next steps with CHRO, OSHA/CONN-OSHA, or in litigation