The latest legal nightmare for professionals in human resources and workplace learning is the liability associated with training.
According to the Third Annual Litigation Trends Survey by Fulbright and Jaworski, labor and employment law disputes increased dramatically from 26 percent in 2005 to 48 percent in 2006. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) reports that 75,768 discrimination complaints were filed in 2006, the highest increase since 2002. Complaints based on race continue to be the most common, followed by gender, retaliation, disability, age, and national origin. Additionally, a record-breaking 15 percent of harassment allegations were made by men in 2006.
Improving job performance is not the only goal for workforce learning programs. Effectively designed, implemented, and documented training has the potential to reduce or prevent liability for an employer. This translates into fewer workplace-related injuries and deaths attributed to negligent training and supervision, reduced worker’s compensation claims and litigation costs, fewer complaints alleging civil rights violations, and a reduction of unethical conduct and financial mismanagement claims, including prosecution of businesses and their senior managers for criminal activities.
Given the trend toward increasing litigation, employers should hire competent instructional designers, trainers, and program evaluators. It is not in the best interest of our profession to have state and federal lawmakers script content and instructor qualifications.