On June 7, Gov. Jared Polis signed the Protecting Opportunities and Workers' Rights (POWR) Act into law, radically transforming Colorado's employment discrimination legal landscape by expanding the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act (CADA).
The POWR Act broadens the type of conduct that constitutes harassment and restricts employers' use of affirmative defenses. The legislation repeals the current legal definition of "harass" ("to create a hostile work environment based upon an individual's race, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, disability, age, or religion") for a broader definition with a much lower threshold of proof. These changes will make it easier for employees to plead and prove harassment claims. In contrast, employers will be required to meet a higher evidentiary standard for affirmative defenses.
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Colorado Adopts New Rules on Harassment and Nondisclosure Agreements
Ogletree via SHRM | Jun 2023
Effective date: 8/7/23
Text of the measure.
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The law is not retroactive. It applies to employment practices occurring on or after the effective date of the law, which is 90 days after the adjournment of the Colorado General Assembly. That means the effective date of the law is August 7, 2023.
Colorado's POWR Act Significantly Expands Workplace Harassment Laws, Limits Nondisclosure Provisions, and Makes Numerous Other Changes to Employment Law
Littler | Jun 2023
POWR also adds marital status to the list of protected classes.
You've Got the POWR: Governor's Pen Brings Changes to Harassment, Other Employment Laws in Colorado
Sherman | Jun 2023
Moreover, the law (once effective) may allow confidential settlement agreements entered into after August 6, 2023 to be used as evidence against employers in civil actions to support punitive damages if one or more agreements that included a nondisclosure provision involved conduct of the same individual(s) who are alleged in the action to have engaged in the discriminatory or unfair employment practice.
Shifting Landscape: New Laws Significantly Impact Colorado Employers
Holland | Jun 2023
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