Three Republican state senators in Kentucky are trying to repeal sexual and workplace harassment training for general assembly members — with one of the lawmakers calling the sessions a “ridiculous” waste of time.
State Sens. John Schickel, Paul Hornback and Tom Buford introduced Senate Bill 152 on Friday to repeal a law requiring training on sexual and workplace harassment for Kentucky General Assembly members. If passed, the bill would also slash required ethics training from three hours to a mere half hour.
“Each course shall be thirty (30) minutes in length,” according to the bill, which still contains the earlier language referring to training lasting at least three hours.
Schickel, who could not be reached for comment on Tuesday, said all of the training is a “ridiculous” waste of time.
“Everyone is on their laptops or cell phones and not paying attention,” Schickel told WDRB.com on Monday. “It’s my view, if you don’t have manners and know how to treat people, a seminar is not going to teach you how to do it.”
If members of the Kentucky General Assembly are found guilty, Schickel said that lawmaker should be prosecuted. The training — put in place in 2014 amid two harassment scandals involving state representatives — is “nothing more than an exercise in political correctness,” Schickel told the Cincinnati Enquirer.
“The ethics training is totally ridiculous,” Schickel said. “Legislators sit through three hours at taxpayers expense to be told by a bureaucrat who’s making six figures and elected by no what’s ethical and what’s not.”
Schickel fears that all sexual and harassment training makes people more reluctant to debate. He said he was particularly taken aback by one lesson from earlier harassment training sessions that advised lawmakers not to slam doors.
“If you slam a door, that could be creating a hostile work environment,” Schickel said. “Talk like that scares me. The Kentuckey General Assembly is a place where ideas are debated and debated vigorously. People are afraid to express opinions, argue forcefully.”
Asked if it would be easier to simply receive the training, Schickel replied: “No, absolutely not. Every legislator I know is afraid to say anything.”
Schickel also scoffed at suggestions by WDRB that the move would send a bad message to the public.
“Everybody is afraid to say anything because it will look bad,” Schickel told WDRB.
Calls seeking comment from Buford and Hornback were not immediately returned on Tuesday.
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