Quebec has expanded employers’ obligations to protect employees from sexual violence. Employers with employees in Quebec need to be aware of the Regulation respecting the measures to prevent or put a stop to sexual violence, which:
- clarifies the scope of what constitutes sexual violence
- sets out employee information and training requirements
- establishes employee complaint and investigation procedures.
Timeline for Compliance
Most of the regulation comes into force on May 27, 2027. The exception is training. Employers have an additional year – until May 27, 2028 – to implement the new employee training requirements.
Road to Expanded Employee Sexual Violence Protections
To understand why this regulation matters, it helps to review how Quebec got here.
In 2024, Quebec Bill 42 (Law 4) established more detailed employer requirements respecting physical and psychological harassment and violence in the workplace. (Previously, Quebec did not have a workplace harassment and violence regime similar to other provinces.)
Employers now had a clear duty to protect employees from physical or psychological violence in the workplace, including sexual violence.
Sexual violence was defined as “any form of violence targeting sexuality or any other misconduct, including unwanted gestures, practices, comments, behaviours or attitudes with sexual connotations, whether they occur once or repeatedly, including violence relating to sexual and gender diversity”. So, even an isolated action could meet this definition.
These changes were followed up by Bill 59 (Law 27), which expanded the requirement for formal health and safety prevention programs or action plans to apply to all Quebec employers. Programs and action plans must identify and analyze physical, ergonomic and psychosocial risks (which include sexual violence risks).
For further details on the changes brought about by these Bills, read our previous posts:
The new regulation slots directly into this structure – clarifying and expanding the obligations of employers with respect to sexual violence.
What Does the New Sexual Violence Regulation Require?
Clarifying the Scope of Sexual Violence
Employers must take into account sexual violence that occurs:
- both inside and outside the workplace, including during work-related social activities
- through technological means (e.g., text messages, social media, email)
- in any interaction – between workers, with a client, or with an employer.
This broad framing means that an employer’s duty to protect workers from sexual violence does not switch off the moment an employee leaves the office, nor is it limited to interactions that occur in person or between workers.
Information and Training for Workers
Employers must provide all workers with written information on sexual violence, tailored to the organizational, sector-based and environmental characteristics of their work environment. The employer’s information must address:
- risks and social interactions that could result in sexual violence
- measures in the prevention program or action plan to eliminate or control risks
- complaint procedures.
Every three years, employers must provide all workers with training on the prevention of sexual violence. The regulation provides details on what the training must cover and the requisite credentials of the person providing the training. Employers cannot simply have a manager deliver a generic slide deck – the instructor must have genuine expertise in the subject matter.
Complaint and Reporting Procedures
The regulation also establishes detailed requirements for how employers must handle complaints and reports of sexual violence. These requirements go beyond the basics of having written procedures in place. Employers must:
- ensure that a worker who files a complaint has the right to be accompanied by a person of their choosing
- ensure the person managing complaints has the necessary knowledge and skills
- manage complaints with diligence, taking measures to prevent “secondary victimization”.
In other words, employers must actively guard against the investigation or complaint management process itself causing further harm to the person who came forward.
7 Practical Tips for HR Teams
With the first compliance deadline less than one year away, now is the time to start preparing. Here are practical steps HR teams should take:
- Note that new requirements extend beyond the workplace. The regulation expressly addresses conduct at work-related social events and through technology. Employers should ensure their policies and communications reflect this extended reach.
- Audit your current documentation. Review your existing harassment and sexual violence policies, complaint procedures and any written information provided to workers. Identify gaps relative to the specific requirements of the new regulation.
- Review your prevention program or action plan. Ensure your prevention program (or action plan for smaller employers) includes an identification and analysis of sexual violence risks specific to your workplace, sector and work environment.
- Develop tailored written communications. Generic communications are unlikely to satisfy the regulation’s requirement that information reflect the organizational, sector-based and environmental characteristics of your workplace. Customize your written information accordingly.
- Review and update your complaint procedure. Ensure your procedure covers all required elements: the steps to file a complaint or report, how complaints will be managed, the right to be accompanied, identification of a designated complaint handler, and measures to prevent secondary victimization.
- Assess your designated complaint handler. Evaluate whether the person you have designated to manage sexual violence complaints has the impartiality, knowledge and skills required by the regulation. If not, arrange for appropriate training or designating a different person – or retaining an external resource.
- Start planning your training program now. Although training obligations do not come into force until May 27, 2028, identifying a qualified trainer and developing a compliant training program takes time. Begin identifying qualified training providers and planning your rollout well in advance of the deadline.
Getting this right is not just about checking boxes. Your workplace culture can be significantly undermined if employees don’t believe that their employer takes the right to protection from sexual violence seriously.
Compliance with these and other employment law requirements is the critical foundation of a healthy organization. Knowing about the laws in advance (and not reacting after hearing about it in the media or from employees) is important. That’s where Compliance Works can help.
How Compliance Works Helps HR teams to Reduce Risk
Employers most at risk of non-compliance (and the related penalties or bad PR) are those who are not aware of changes to critical employment laws. A change to a health and safety regulation in one province can be easy to miss. Compliance Works can help you reduce that risk.
- Receive immediate updates when amendments – like the Quebec sexual violence regulation – are published and come into force.
- Read summaries of the current provision and the upcoming changes – written in plain language that HR professionals can easily understand.
- Add reminders to ensure important changes are not missed.
- Use template policies to develop policies for your workplace.
Ready to ensure your business is complying with critical HR laws? Request a Demo or email us at info@complianceworks.ca to see how Compliance Works can support your team.
