AB 1803: California's anti-hate-speech training requirement

Last reviewed

Starting January 1, 2028, California employers with five or more employees must include anti-hate-speech training in the harassment prevention training they already give. It is a new topic inside the existing training, not a separate course, and training that already covers the right ground may satisfy it.

What the law says

Assembly Bill 1803 was signed on September 27, 2026. It amends Government Code section 12950.1, the law that already requires harassment prevention training. The new language is short:

“Beginning January 1, 2028, an employer shall also include anti-hate speech training as a component of the training and education … Anti-hate speech training shall provide supervisors and employees with practical guidance on recognizing, reporting, and confronting workplace speech that vilifies, humiliates, or incites hatred against people based on the protected characteristics listed in subdivision (a) of Section 12940.”

Section 12940 is part of the Fair Employment and Housing Act. Its protected characteristics include race, religion, national origin, disability, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, and age, among others.

Who has to comply

The same employers who already have to provide harassment prevention training: any employer with five or more employees. If you train your people today because of that rule, AB 1803 applies to you. If you have fewer than five employees, neither requirement applies.

What changes, and what doesn't

  • New: from January 1, 2028, the training has to include guidance on recognizing, reporting, and confronting hate speech at work.
  • Unchanged: the length of the training. It is still at least two hours for supervisors and one hour for other employees. The new material is a component of that training.
  • Unchanged: the schedule. Training is still due within six months of hire or promotion to supervisor, and every two years after that.

Your current training may already cover it

The law includes a sentence that is easy to miss:

“A training that includes information about the prohibition against unlawful harassment and prevention of abusive conduct that is based on an individual's protected characteristics listed in subdivision (a) of Section 12940 satisfies the requirement …”

In plain terms: a course that already teaches that harassment is prohibited, and how to prevent abusive conduct aimed at people because of who they are, meets the new requirement. Many existing courses cover both. Some may not tie abusive conduct to protected characteristics, or may treat it only in passing.

So before buying anything new, ask whoever provides your training two questions, and get the answers in writing:

  • Does the course cover the prohibition against unlawful harassment?
  • Does it cover preventing abusive conduct that is based on a person's protected characteristics, as AB 1803 describes?

What the law leaves open

AB 1803 does not define “hate speech” beyond the description above, and it does not say whether employees trained before 2028 need anything extra before their next two-year training comes due. The Civil Rights Department enforces this law and may publish guidance. If either question matters for your business, ask an employment attorney.

What to do before 2028

  • Find out when each of your people is next due for training.
  • Ask your training provider the two questions above.
  • For any training given on or after January 1, 2028, use a course that covers the anti-hate-speech material.
  • Keep records of who was trained, when, and on what.

For the rest of the rules, see California harassment training requirements.

Common questions

When does AB 1803 take effect?
The anti-hate-speech training requirement begins January 1, 2028. The Governor signed the bill on September 27, 2026.
Which employers does AB 1803 apply to?
The same employers already required to provide harassment prevention training in California: those with five or more employees.
Does AB 1803 add training hours?
The law adds the anti-hate-speech material as a component of the existing training. It does not change the two-hour requirement for supervisors or the one-hour requirement for other employees.
Do I need to buy a separate anti-hate-speech course?
Not necessarily. The law says a training that includes information about the prohibition against unlawful harassment and the prevention of abusive conduct based on protected characteristics satisfies the requirement. Ask your training provider whether their course covers this, and get the answer in writing.
How does AB 1803 define hate speech?
It does not define the term on its own. It describes the training as practical guidance on recognizing, reporting, and confronting workplace speech that vilifies, humiliates, or incites hatred against people based on the characteristics protected by the Fair Employment and Housing Act.

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