The EEOC rescinded its harassment enforcement guidance in January 2026, and what an employer's own documents now have to be measured against

What happened

What information mattered

• The 1999 vicarious liability guidance carries a notice on the publisher's own page that it was superseded on April 29, 2024 [3].

• Its replacement was approved on April 29, 2024 by a 3-2 Commission vote and replaced the 1999 guidance and several other earlier documents [2].

• Portions of that replacement were declared unlawful and vacated nationwide on May 15, 2025 in Texas, et al. v. EEOC [2].

• The Commission voted 2-1 on January 22, 2026 to rescind the replacement, announced January 23, 2026 [1].

• The rescission announcement names nothing issued in place of the rescinded guidance [1].

• The EEOC's Promising Practices for Preventing Harassment page, issued 2017, carries no supersession or rescission notice, and states in its own words that its contents do not have the force and effect of law and are not meant to bind the public in any way [4].

• State law did not move with the federal guidance. California Government Code section 12950.1 requires an employer with five or more employees to provide sexual harassment prevention training to each employee in California once every two years [5].

• New York directs an employer that does not adopt the state model policy to adopt one that meets or exceeds the published minimum standards [6].

• The charge clock is unchanged and is short: in general a charge must be filed within 180 calendar days of the discrimination, extended to 300 where a state or local agency enforces a law prohibiting the same practice [7].

The insurance question

What was decided, and by whom

• The Commission decided to rescind: it voted 2-1 on January 22, 2026 to rescind its Enforcement Guidance on Harassment in the Workplace, announced January 23, 2026 [1]. A federal court decided the earlier step: on May 15, 2025 in Texas, et al. v. EEOC portions of that guidance were declared unlawful and vacated, with nationwide effect stated for the unlawful portions [2]. No authority decided anything about any employer's own policy, and nothing here reflects a decision about any specific employer, charge, claim, or policy.

What cannot be generalized from this

• This does not state what any employer's anti-harassment policy should contain. That is a legal question for an employment lawyer, not something an agency page reading answers.

• It does not say whether any employment practices liability policy would respond to any claim. Coverage is decided by the insurer under the policy actually issued.

• The scope of the Texas, et al. v. EEOC vacatur is described here only as the source describes it, which is that portions were vacated and that the vacatur of the unlawful portions applies nationwide. Which portions, and what that means for any given fact pattern, is a legal question and the opinion was not read here.

• Agency guidance can be reissued, and a rescission is not a statement that conduct is lawful. Re-check the EEOC guidance pages before relying on the position recorded here as of 2026-09-01.

• Only California and New York requirements were read here. Other states impose their own training and policy requirements that were not read and are not described.

• Nothing here addresses the wage and hour exposure that employment practices policies often treat separately, and no wage and hour source was read for this walkthrough.

Source ledger

7 sources. Every citation number above resolves to a record below. Nothing here sits behind an account.

1. [1]

   EEOC Commission Votes to Rescind 2024 Harassment Guidance(opens the original record on U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission)

   U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity CommissionRegulatorPrimaryJurisdiction USPublished January 23, 2026Effective January 22, 2026Last checked September 1, 2026Updates: as-neededID eeoc-newsroom-rescind-2024-harassment-guidance

   What this source supports (5)

   • The Commission voted 2-1 to rescind its Enforcement Guidance on Harassment in the Workplace, which was originally approved in 2024.
   • The vote took place on January 22, 2026 and was announced by the agency on January 23, 2026.
   • The announcement does not name any guidance document issued in place of the rescinded guidance.
   • Chair Andrea Lucas stated that federal employment laws against discrimination, harassment, and retaliation, and Supreme Court precedent interpreting those laws, remain firmly in place.
   • The announcement makes no mention of Texas, et al. v. EEOC or of the scope of any court ruling.

   Active
2. [2]

   Enforcement Guidance on Harassment in the Workplace(opens the original record on U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission)

   U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity CommissionRegulatorPrimaryJurisdiction USPublished April 29, 2024Effective April 29, 2024Last checked September 1, 2026Updates: quarterlyID eeoc-enforcement-guidance-harassment-workplace-2024

   What this source supports (3)

   • This document was approved by the Commission on April 29, 2024 by a 3-2 vote.
   • This document replaced the Enforcement Guidance on Vicarious Employer Liability for Unlawful Harassment by Supervisors, issued in 1999, along with several other earlier EEOC guidance documents.
   • On May 15, 2025 a federal court in Texas, et al. v. EEOC declared unlawful and vacated portions of this document as contrary to law, and the court stated that its vacatur of the unlawful portions applies nationwide.
3. [3]

   Enforcement Guidance: Vicarious Liability for Unlawful Harassment by Supervisors(opens the original record on U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission)

   U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity CommissionRegulatorPrimaryJurisdiction USPublished June 18, 1999Effective June 18, 1999Last checked September 1, 2026Updates: Reviewed at least every 180 days.ID eeoc-guidance-vicarious-liability-supervisor-harassment

   What this source supports (10)

   • An anti-harassment policy and complaint procedure should contain, at a minimum, a clear explanation of prohibited conduct.
   • The policy should contain assurance that employees who make complaints of harassment or provide information related to such complaints will be protected against retaliation.
   • The policy should contain a clearly described complaint process that provides accessible avenues of complaint.
   • The policy should contain assurance that the employer will protect the confidentiality of harassment complaints to the extent possible.
   • The policy should provide a complaint process that provides a prompt, thorough, and impartial investigation.
   • The policy should contain assurance that the employer will take immediate and appropriate corrective action when it determines that harassment has occurred.
   • An employer should provide every employee with a copy of the policy and complaint procedure, and redistribute it periodically.
   • Other means of dissemination include posting the policy in central locations and incorporating it into employee handbooks.
   • If feasible, the employer should provide training to all employees to ensure they understand their rights and responsibilities.
   • Supervisors should receive periodic training covering prohibited conduct, the seriousness of the policy, supervisor responsibilities on learning of harassment, and the prohibition on retaliation.

   Superseded
4. [4]

   Promising Practices for Preventing Harassment(opens the original record on U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission)

   U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity CommissionRegulatorSecondaryJurisdiction USLast checked August 31, 2026Updates: Reviewed at least every 180 days.ID eeoc-promising-practices-preventing-harassment

   What this source supports (25)

   • A harassment policy should be comprehensive, easy to understand, and regularly communicated to all employees.
   • The policy should be written and communicated in a clear, easy to understand style and format.
   • The policy should be provided to employees upon hire and during harassment trainings, and posted centrally.
   • A harassment complaint system should provide multiple avenues of complaint, if possible, including an avenue to report complaints regarding senior leaders.
   • The complaint system should be fully resourced and accessible to all employees.
   • Training should be repeated and reinforced regularly and delivered to employees at every level and location of the organization.
   • Supervisors and managers warrant additional training beyond the training given to other employees.
   • These are described as promising practices rather than strict legal requirements under federal law.
   • The policy should include an easy to understand description of prohibited conduct, including examples.
   • The policy should include an unequivocal statement that retaliation is prohibited, and that individuals who report harassing conduct, participate in investigations, or take any other actions protected under federal employment discrimination laws will not be subjected to retaliation.
   • The policy should include a description of the organization's harassment complaint system, including multiple (if possible), easily accessible reporting avenues.
   • The policy should include a statement that the employer will provide a prompt, impartial, and thorough investigation.
   • The policy should include a statement that the identity of individuals who report harassment, alleged victims, witnesses, and alleged harassers will be kept confidential to the extent possible and permitted by law, consistent with a thorough and impartial investigation.
   • The policy should include an assurance that the organization will take immediate and proportionate corrective action if it determines that harassment has occurred.
   • Effective written policies are written and communicated in a clear, easy to understand style and format.
   • Effective written policies are provided to employees upon hire and during harassment trainings, and posted centrally, such as on the company's internal website, in the company handbook, near employee time clocks, in employee break rooms, and in other commonly used areas or locations.
   • An effective harassment complaint system is fully resourced, enabling the organization to respond promptly, thoroughly, and effectively to complaints.
   • An effective harassment complaint system provides multiple avenues of complaint, if possible, including an avenue to report complaints regarding senior leaders.
   • An effective harassment complaint system provides prompt, thorough, and neutral investigations.
   • The personnel responsible for the complaint system are well-trained, objective, and neutral, and have the authority, independence, and resources required to receive, investigate, and resolve complaints appropriately.
   • Responsible personnel should appropriately document every complaint, from initial intake to investigation to resolution, and prepare a written report documenting the investigation, findings, recommendations, and disciplinary action imposed (if any), and corrective and preventative action taken (if any).
   • Training should be repeated and reinforced regularly, and provided to employees at every level and location of the organization.
   • Because supervisors and managers have additional responsibilities, they may benefit from additional training.
   • Effective training for supervisors and managers includes information about how to prevent, identify, stop, report, and correct harassment, clear instructions about how to report harassment up the chain of command, an unequivocal statement that retaliation is prohibited, and explanations of the consequences of failing to fulfill their responsibilities related to harassment and retaliation.
   • Although these practices are not legal requirements under federal employment discrimination laws, they may enhance employers' compliance efforts.

   Active
5. [5]

   California Government Code section 12950.1 - sexual harassment prevention training(opens the original record on California Legislative Information (California Legislative Counsel))

   California Legislative Information (California Legislative Counsel)Primary lawPrimaryJurisdiction CALast checked August 31, 2026Updates: Reviewed at least every 180 days.ID ca-gov-12950-1

   What this source supports (6)

   • An employer having five or more employees shall provide sexual harassment prevention training.
   • Supervisory employees must receive at least two hours of classroom or other effective interactive training.
   • Nonsupervisory employees must receive at least one hour of classroom or other effective interactive training.
   • Each employer covered by the section shall provide the training to each employee in California once every two years.
   • New nonsupervisory employees shall be provided training within six months of hire.
   • New supervisory employees shall be provided training within six months of the assumption of a supervisory position.

   Active
6. [6]

   Sexual Harassment Prevention Model Policy and Training(opens the original record on State of New York (ny.gov))

   State of New York (ny.gov)RegulatorPrimaryJurisdiction NYEffective October 9, 2018Last checked August 31, 2026Updates: Reviewed at least every 180 days.ID nys-sexual-harassment-prevention-policy-and-training

   What this source supports (4)

   • Every employer in New York State is required to adopt a sexual harassment prevention policy.
   • Every employer in New York State is required to provide employees with sexual harassment prevention training.
   • Each employee must receive training on an annual basis, starting October 9, 2018.
   • An employer that does not adopt the state model policy must adopt a policy that meets or exceeds the published minimum standards, including a procedure for the timely and confidential investigation of complaints.

   Active
7. [7]

   Time Limits For Filing A Charge(opens the original record on U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission)

   U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity CommissionRegulatorPrimaryJurisdiction USLast checked August 31, 2026Updates: Reviewed at least every 180 days.ID eeoc-time-limits-filing-charge

   What this source supports (4)

   • In general a charge must be filed within 180 calendar days from the day the discrimination took place.
   • The 180 calendar day filing deadline is extended to 300 calendar days if a state or local agency enforces a law that prohibits employment discrimination on the same basis.
   • For age discrimination the extension to 300 days applies only where a state law prohibits age discrimination in employment and a state agency enforces it.
   • Holidays and weekends are included in the calculation, and a deadline falling on a weekend or holiday moves to the next business day.

   Active