,i #aafth ,,congress #b;d ,session ,h4 ,r4 #hdeh ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,september #cj1 #bjbj,mr4 ,ted ,lieu of ,california introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,financial ,services ,a ,,bill ,to amend the ,securities ,exchange ,act of #aicd to require public companies to provide sexual harassment claim disclosures in certain reports1 to require public companies to implement mandatory sexual harassment training1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,protections and ,transparency in the ,workplace ,act4 #b4 ,covered discrimination and harassment disclosures 7a7 ,definition ,section #c7;a7 of the ,securities ,exchange ,act of #aicd 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #gh;c7a77 is amended-- 7#a7 by redesignating the second paragraph 7#hj7 7related to funding portals7 as paragraph 7#ha72 and 7#b7 by adding at the end the following3 7#hb7 ,covered discrimination and harassment ,the term covered discrimination and harassment means-- 7,a7 discrimination because of race1 color1 religion1 sex 7including sexual orientation and gender identity71 or national origin under title ,,vii of the ,civil ,rights ,act of #aifd 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #bjjj;e et seq472 7,b7 discrimination because of age under the ,age ,discrimination in ,employment ,act of #aifg 7#bi ,u4,s4,c4 #fba et seq472 7,c7 discrimination on the basis of disability under-- 7i7 title ,i of the ,americans with ,disabilities ,act of #aiij 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #abaaa et seq472 or 7ii7 section #eja of the ,rehabilitation ,act of #aigc 7#bi ,u4,s4,c4 #gia72 7,d7 discrimination because of genetic information under title ,,ii of the ,genetic ,information ,nondiscrimination ,act of #bjjh 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #bjjj;ff et seq472 7,e7 discrimination on the basis of status concerning service in a uniformed service under section #dcaa7;a7 of title #ch1 ,united ,states ,code2 7,f7 sexual harassment2 or 7,g7 sexual assault or abuse4 4 7b7 ,disclosures ,section #ac of the ,securities ,exchange ,act of #aicd 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #ghm7 is amended by adding at the end the following3 7s7 ,covered discrimination and harassment disclosures 7#a7 ,annual and quarterly disclosures ,each issuer required to file an annual or quarterly report under subsection 7a7 shall disclose1 in each such report1 the following3 7,a7 ,in general 7i7 ,the number of covered discrimination and harassment claims received within the reporting period4 7ii7 ,the current number of covered discrimination and harassment claims being investigated at the time of the report4 7iii7 ,the number of covered discrimination and harassment claims that were resolved within the reporting period4 7iv7 ,the number of settlements in connection with covered discrimination and harassment claims within the reporting period4 7v7 ,the number of court judgements in connection with covered discrimination and harassment claims within the reporting period4 7vi7 ,the aggregate amount of payments made in connection with covered discrimination and harassment claims1 including payments made by persons other than the issuer 7including amounts that may have been paid under an insurance policy or directly by an employee of the issuer74 7vii7 ,the outcomes of all adjudicated covered discrimination and harassment cases1 including which party was the prevailing party or1 if there was no prevailing party1 whether there was a settlement with no admission of guilt4 7,b7 ,additional disclosures 7i7 ,the number of repeat settlements of covered discrimination and harassment claims with respect to a specific individual4 7ii7 ,the efforts taken by the issuer1 including mandatory covered discrimination and harassment training1 to prevent the perpetration of harassment1 discrimination1 or abuse by employees4 7iii7 ,the average length of time it takes for the issuer to resolve covered discrimination and harassment claims4 7,c7 ,inclusion of related entities 7i7 ,in general ,in making any disclosure under this paragraph1 the issuer shall disclosure such information with respect to itself as well as any parent1 subsidiary1 or affiliate4 7ii7 ,data format ,in making any disclosure under this paragraph1 the issuer shall report each of the following sets of data3 7,i7 ,in an aggregated format including the disclosures with respect to the issuer and all parents1 subsidiaries1 and affiliates of the issuer4 7,,ii7 ,the aggregate of the disclosures for all parents1 subsidiaries1 and affiliates of the issuer4 7,,iii7 ,separate disclosures for the issuer and each parent1 subsidiary1 or affiliate4 7#b7 ,attestation requirement ,each issuer required to file an annual or quarterly report under subsection 7a7 shall include with such report a separate attestation by the general counsel1 the chief financial officer1 the chief executive officer1 and each member of the board of directors of the issuer that the issuer-- 7,a7 has in place policies and systems to ensure that the management of the issuer is aware of the requirements of this subsection1 section #ad;,c1 and section #ad;,d1 and any rules issued thereunder2 and 7,b7 is in compliance with such requirements and rules4 7#c7 ,current reports 7,a7 ,in general ,each issuer required to file current reports under this section shall-- 7i7 file such a report each time the issuer enters or exits any agreement related to the resolution of a covered discrimination and harassment claim against the issuer 7or a parent1 subsidiary1 or other affiliate of the issuer72 and 7ii7 state in such report whether the agreement involved a claim against an employee who has had #b or more previous covered discrimination and harassment claims made against them4 7,b7 ,redactions ,in making a report required under subparagraph 7,a71 the issuer-- 7i7 may redact the names of specific individuals involved with the agreement2 and 7ii7 unless the issuer has received consent from a complainant1 shall redact the name of the complainant4 7#d7 ,claim defined ,in this subsection1 the term claim means any allegation1 assertion1 or formal legal action4 4 #c4 ,independent and impartial investigatory requirements ,the ,securities ,exchange ,act of #aicd 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #gh;a et seq47 is amended by inserting after section #ad;,b the following3 #ad;,c4 ,independent and impartial investigatory requirements 7a7 ,in general ,in investigating any covered discrimination and harassment claim1 an issuer shall engage and pay for a third-party law firm to investigate reports of covered discrimination and harassment on an impartial1 fact-finding basis rather than at the direction of or scope defined by the issuer4 7b7 ,selection of law firm ,in choosing the third-party law firm to be engaged under subsection 7a71 the issuer may only choose a law firm agreed to by all employees involved with the claim4 7c7 ,claim defined ,in this section1 the term claim means any allegation1 assertion1 or formal legal action4 4 #d4 ,mandatory covered discrimination and harassment training1 including bystander training1 and workplace survey ,the ,securities ,exchange ,act of #aicd 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #gh;a et seq471 as amended by section #c1 is further amended by inserting after section #ad;,c the following3 #ad;,d4 ,mandatory covered discrimination and harassment training1 including bystander training1 and workplace survey 7a7 ,workplace training programs 7#a7 ,in general ,each covered issuer shall develop and disseminate workplace training programs to educate employees at all levels1 no matter what position1 about what constitutes prohibited covered discrimination and harassment1 how to report covered discrimination and harassment1 how to prevent covered discrimination and harassment1 and what rights employees have with respect to covered discrimination and harassment4 7#b7 ,special training for certain employees ,each training program developed under paragraph 7#a7 shall require separate training for managers and human resources employees4 7#c7 ,specific contents of training program ,each training program developed under paragraph 7#a7 shall contain the following3 7,a7 ,an explanation of what constitutes covered discrimination and harassment4 7,b7 ,an explanation of how covered discrimination and harassment can impact victims4 7,c7 ,the rights of individuals with respect to covered discrimination and harassment and how to report it4 7,d7 ,how individuals1 including bystanders who encounter covered discrimination and harassment1 can intervene or report covered discrimination and harassment and what their rights are should they report4 7,e7 ,how employers and managers can prevent covered discrimination and harassment from occurring in the workplace4 7,f7 ,an identification of available resources for making complaints1 including contact information for the head of human resources1 contact information for the whistleblower tip line established under this section1 and other public resources where further information can be obtained1 such as law enforcement agencies1 hospitals1 and mental health resources4 7#d7 ,frequency of training ,each training program developed under paragraph 7#a7 shall-- 7,a7 require new employees to complete the training program not later than #fj days after the employee assumes their position2 7,b7 require all employees to complete the training program once annually2 and 7,c7 require any employee found to have committed covered discrimination and harassment to retake the training as soon as possible4 7b7 ,annual survey ,each covered issuer shall conduct an annual survey of the issuer's employees to determine-- 7#a7 whether employees feel safe2 7#b7 whether employees would be comfortable reporting sexual harassment2 and 7#c7 if there are ways the issuer could create better avenues for employees to report sexual harassment4 7c7 ,use of outside law firms 7#a7 ,in general ,each covered issuer shall contract with a third-party law firm to carry out the workplace training program required under subsection 7a7 and the annual survey required under subsection 7b74 7#b7 ,sense of ,congress ,it is the sense of the ,congress that covered issuers should use the same law firm to carry out the annual survey and the workplace training program4 7d7 ,whistleblower tip line ,each covered issuer shall-- 7#a7 establish an anonymous whistle blower tip line for employees2 and 7#b7 with respect to any report made to the tip line1 immediately provide the report to the general counsel of the issuer1 the head of human resources for the issuer1 and the members of the board of directors of the issuer4 7e7 ,definitions ,in this section3 7#a7 ,covered issuer ,the term covered issuer means an issuer of a security registered pursuant to section #ab4 7#b7 ,employee ,with respect to an issuer1 the term employee means-- 7,a7 an employee of the issuer1 including a volunteer or other individual working for the issuer without pay2 and 7,b7 an independent contractor who is contracting with the issuer1 and each employee of the independent contractor1 including a volunteer or other individual working for the contractor without pay4 4