California Governor Gavin Newsom signed three bills into law Thursday to protect child actors from abuse and harassment while in the workplace.
Assembly Bill 3175 requires now “that the parent or legal guardian ensure that sexual harassment training, as made available online by the department, be completed by the age-eligible minor, as defined, accompanied by their parent or legal guardian,” according to Deadline in a piece published Thursday. (RELATED: Gov. Gavin Newsom Declares State Of Emergency As Wildfires Char California, Gives Evacuation Orders)
California Gov. Gavin Newsom Signs Bills To Protect Child Actors From Sexual Harassment & Abuse https://t.co/ODfoKTw0xJ
— Deadline Hollywood (@DEADLINE) October 1, 2020
Assembly Bill 1963 requires the addition of “a human resource employee of a business with 5 or more employees that employs minors to the list of individuals who are mandated reporters.” The passage of the bill also adds, for purposes of reporting sexual abuse, “an adult whose duties require direct contact with and supervision of minors in the performance of the minors’ duties in the workplace of a business with 5 or more employees to the list of individuals who are mandated reporters.” (RELATED: ‘Gaps’ In Renewable Energy Led To Blackouts For Millions Of Californians, Gov Newsom Says)
While the passage of Assembly Bill 3369, exempts an employer from these sexual harassment training requirements, but only “for an employee who has, within the last 2 years, received the required training from an employer or who was issued a valid work permit by the Labor Commissioner.” The bill also mandates that said employee then receive the training every 2 years after that.
Child protection advocates hailed the governor‘s move as a step in the right direction.
“We believe in the prevention of child abuse and sexual harassment,” Anne Henry, co-founder of Bizparentz Foundation, which advocates on behalf of child actors, shared with the outlet. “We believe these three bills move toward that goal.”
Henry went on to explain that previous bills “attempted to provide sexual harassment training to professional child actors, but the bills were unable to be implemented.”
All three of the California bills take effect immediately.
