Where is sexual harassment actually defined in Hawaii law?

In a commission regulation rather than the statute. The phrase sexual harassment does not appear in HRS Section 378-2 at all. Hawaii Administrative Rules Section 12-46-109 supplies the definition, covering unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct or visual forms of harassment of a sexual nature, including conduct that has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual's work performance or creating an intimidating, hostile or offensive working environment. The reference to visual forms reaches images as well as words and acts, though it speaks to the medium rather than to where the conduct happened.

Do I have to complain to my employer first in Hawaii?

It is not a precondition, and Hawaii goes further than most states. Hawaii Administrative Rules Section 12-46-109(d) says an employee harassed by a coworker should inform the employer, and then states that an employee's failure to give such notice may not be an affirmative defense. Section 12-46-109(c) separately makes an employer responsible for the acts of its agents and supervisory employees regardless of whether the employer knew or should have known of them. Reporting in writing is still worth doing, because a dated report is evidence, but the absence of one is not the obstacle it is in some other states.

Can my Hawaii employer be responsible for harassment by a customer or contractor?

It can. Hawaii Administrative Rules Section 12-46-109(e) provides that an employer may be responsible for the acts of non employees, with respect to sexual harassment of employees at the workplace, where the employer knows or should have known of the conduct and fails to take immediate and appropriate corrective action, and it weighs the extent of the employer's control over the non employee. That makes reporting the conduct to management important in this specific situation, because the employer's knowledge is part of the test. Keep a record of what you reported and when.

What does Hawaii law protect that federal law does not?

A long list. HRS Section 378-2(a)(1) covers race, sex including gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, age, religion, color, ancestry, disability, marital status, arrest and court record, reproductive health decision, and domestic or sexual violence victim status where the employer was given notice or had actual knowledge. Section 378-1 defines arrest and court record broadly and defines reproductive health decision to include the use or attempted use of a legal drug, device or medical service intended to prevent or terminate a pregnancy or of assisted reproductive technology. Further subsections at Section 378-2(a)(4) to (a)(9) add protections including credit history, breastfeeding at the workplace and National Guard service absence.

Does my employer have to provide harassment training in Hawaii?

Not under the provisions reviewed here. Hawaii Administrative Rules Section 12-46-109(g) is written as encouragement rather than command: it says prevention is the best tool for the elimination of sexual harassment and that employers should raise the subject, express strong disapproval, develop appropriate sanctions, inform employees of their right to raise the issue and how to raise it, and take other steps necessary to prevent sexual harassment. That is a should, not a shall. Requirements that might apply to state employees under other chapters were not part of this review.

Filing a Workplace Harassment Complaint in Hawaii

Reviewed by DocDraft Legal Team - Hawaii - Last updated September 15, 2026

The filing deadline for a workplace harassment complaint with the Hawaii Civil Rights Commission is one year. That is a recent change. Act 56, Session Laws of Hawaii 2026, enacted as Senate Bill 2727, H.D. 1, C.D. 1, struck one hundred eighty days from HRS Section 368-11(c) and inserted one year, and the act took effect on approval on May 28, 2026. The codified version of Section 368-11 published on the legislature's site still reads one hundred eighty days, so most sources, including commercial databases that follow the code, are now behind the law. The extension does not revive a claim that was already dead. Act 56 contains no applicability or retroactivity clause of its own. The Hawaii Civil Rights Commission has published its position that the expansion will be applied prospectively and applies to claims that had not yet expired on the date of enactment. That is the enforcing agency's stated position rather than statutory text, and it is the position to plan around: conduct that was still within the old one hundred eighty days on May 28, 2026 gets the full year, and anything already time barred on that date stays barred. The trigger matters as much as the number. Section 368-11(c) runs the period from the date upon which the alleged unlawful discriminatory practice occurred, or the date of the last occurrence in a pattern of ongoing discriminatory practice. Harassment is usually a pattern, so in Hawaii the clock ordinarily runs from the last incident rather than the first, and that rule is in the limitations text itself rather than borrowed from case law. Coverage is as wide as it gets. HRS Section 378-1 defines employer as any person, including the State or any of its political subdivisions and any agent of such person, having one or more employees, but not the United States. Federal Title VII needs fifteen employees. A worker at a two person Hawaii company can have a full state claim and no federal one. If your situation involves assault, threats or stalking, contact emergency services and speak with an attorney.

Find out where you stand in Hawaii

Where are you with the harassment complaint?

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How long do I have to file a workplace harassment complaint in Hawaii?

One year. Act 56, Session Laws of Hawaii 2026, amended HRS Section 368-11(c) by striking one hundred eighty days and inserting one year, and the act took effect on approval on May 28, 2026. The period runs from the date the alleged unlawful discriminatory practice occurred, or from the date of the last occurrence in a pattern of ongoing discriminatory practice. Be aware that the codified text published on the legislature's site still reads one hundred eighty days, so many sources are out of date on this point.

Does the new one year Hawaii deadline apply to harassment that happened before 2026?

Only if the claim was still alive when the change took effect. Act 56 contains no applicability or retroactivity clause. The Hawaii Civil Rights Commission has published its position that the extension will be applied prospectively and applies to claims that had not yet expired on the date of enactment, which is the agency's stated position rather than language in the act. As a practical matter, conduct that was still within the old one hundred eighty days on May 28, 2026 gets the full year, and a claim already barred by then stays barred. If your dates are anywhere near that line, take them to a Hawaii employment lawyer now.

Do I have to file with the Hawaii Civil Rights Commission before I can sue?

In practice yes. HRS Section 368-12 is the provision that authorizes a private civil action under the chapter, and it conditions that action on a notice of right to sue, which the commission issues on the written request of a complainant, which in turn presupposes a complaint on file. Neither Section 368-11 nor Section 368-12 uses the word exhaust, but the structure means the commission complaint comes first. File with the commission and then deal with the right to sue.

Hawaii doubled this deadline in May 2026, the published code has not caught up, and the rules that decide a harassment case are in a commission regulation rather than the statute.

The Hawaii deadline is one year, not one hundred eighty days. Act 56, Session Laws of Hawaii 2026, amended HRS Section 368-11(c) by striking one hundred eighty days and inserting one year, and took effect upon approval on May 28, 2026. The codified section published on the legislature's site still carries the old number and a credit line that stops before the act, so a page or database quoting one hundred eighty days is quoting superseded text. Work from the one year figure and confirm your own dates with a Hawaii employment lawyer.

Relevant Laws

HRS Section 368-11(c): One Year to File an HCRC Complaint

Act 56, Session Laws of Hawaii 2026, replaced the former one hundred eighty days with one year, effective on approval May 28, 2026. The codified text on the legislature's site still shows the old number.

Act 56, Session Laws of Hawaii 2026: Check Your Dates Against May 28, 2026

The act has no applicability clause. The commission's published position is that the extension applies prospectively to claims that had not yet expired on the date of enactment, so a claim already barred on that date is not revived.

HRS Section 368-11(c)(2): The Clock Can Run From the Last Occurrence

The period runs from the date the practice occurred or the date of the last occurrence in a pattern of ongoing discriminatory practice. Record every incident and its date so the pattern is documented.

HRS Section 378-1: One Employee Makes a Hawaii Employer

Employer means any person, including the State or any of its political subdivisions and any agent of such person, having one or more employees, but not the United States. Employment excludes domestic service in a home except as provided in Section 378-2(a)(9).

HAR Section 12-46-109(c) and (d): Employer Responsibility and the Missing Defense

An employer is responsible for the acts of its agents and supervisory employees regardless of authorization or knowledge, and an employee's failure to notify the employer of coworker harassment may not be an affirmative defense.

Regional Variances

How Hawaii differs

The longer period does not bring a dead claim

The longer period does not bring a dead claim back. Act 56 has no applicability or retroactivity clause. The Hawaii Civil Rights Commission has stated publicly that the extension applies prospectively and reaches claims that had not yet expired on the date of enactment, which is the agency's position rather than language in the act. In practice that means conduct still inside the old one hundred eighty day window on May 28, 2026 picks up the full year, while a claim already barred before that date stays barred.

The Hawaii clock can start at the last incident.

The Hawaii clock can start at the last incident. Section 368-11(c) measures the period from the date upon which the alleged unlawful discriminatory practice occurred, or the date of the last occurrence in a pattern of ongoing discriminatory practice. For harassment, which is usually a series rather than a single event, the second branch is the one that matters. Record every incident with its date anyway, because the pattern is what makes the last occurrence meaningful.

Hawaii covers an employer with one employee. HRS Section

Hawaii covers an employer with one employee. HRS Section 378-1 defines employer as any person, including the State or any of its political subdivisions and any agent of such person, having one or more employees, but not the United States, with no headcount period and no averaging test. The case notes published with that section record the Hawaii Supreme Court's reading that the legislature intended all employers, regardless of size, to be subject to the chapter. There is no separate, smaller threshold for sexual harassment here, because there is only one definition.

Suggested Compliance Checklist

HAR Section 12-46-20(b)(1): The Right to Sue Request Has a Three Day Cut Off

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The written request may be made at any time after the complaint is filed but no later than three days after the conclusion of the scheduling conference. This deadline appears in the rules and not in the statute.

HRS Section 368-12: Ninety Days After the Notice of Right to Sue

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The commission may issue a notice of right to sue on the written request of the complainant, and a civil action may be brought within ninety days after receipt of that notice. Record the receipt date.

HAR Section 12-46-109(c) and (d): Employer Responsibility and the Missing Defense

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HRS Section 378-2(a)(1): Bases Covered by Hawaii Law

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The list includes race, sex including gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, age, religion, color, ancestry, disability, marital status, arrest and court record, reproductive health decision, and domestic or sexual violence victim status on notice to the employer.

Task	Description	Document	Days after starting
HAR Section 12-46-20(b)(1): The Right to Sue Request Has a Three Day Cut Off	The written request may be made at any time after the complaint is filed but no later than three days after the conclusion of the scheduling conference. This deadline appears in the rules and not in the statute.	-	See your deadline
HRS Section 368-12: Ninety Days After the Notice of Right to Sue	The commission may issue a notice of right to sue on the written request of the complainant, and a civil action may be brought within ninety days after receipt of that notice. Record the receipt date.	-	See your deadline
HAR Section 12-46-109(c) and (d): Employer Responsibility and the Missing Defense	An employer is responsible for the acts of its agents and supervisory employees regardless of authorization or knowledge, and an employee's failure to notify the employer of coworker harassment may not be an affirmative defense.	-	See your deadline
HRS Section 378-2(a)(1): Bases Covered by Hawaii Law	The list includes race, sex including gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, age, religion, color, ancestry, disability, marital status, arrest and court record, reproductive health decision, and domestic or sexual violence victim status on notice to the employer.	-	See your deadline

Frequently Asked Questions

Other Hawaii guides

Adverse Possession in Hawaii: Twenty Years and a Five Acre Ceiling

Asset Protection Planning in Hawaii (2026)

Dealing With Debt Collectors in Hawaii (2026)

Expunging a Criminal Record in Hawaii (2026)

Filing Chapter 7 Bankruptcy in Hawaii (2026)

Firing an Employee in Hawaii (2026)

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