Tennessee does not require sexual harassment training. Two things about Tennessee law are nonetheless worth an operator’s attention: the state threshold is lower than the federal one, and the agency that used to handle these complaints no longer exists.
Eight employees, not fifteen
The Tennessee Human Rights Act applies to the state and its political subdivisions and to persons employing eight or more people within the state, along with anyone acting as an agent of an employer.
That matters because federal Title VII starts at fifteen. A Tennessee restaurant with ten employees sits outside federal coverage and inside state coverage, which is the opposite of what most operators assume when they read a national compliance guide.
The Human Rights Commission was dissolved in 2025
On July 1, 2025, Tennessee dissolved the Tennessee Human Rights Commission. State employment discrimination intake and enforcement moved to the Division of Civil Rights Enforcement under the Attorney General.
Anything published before mid-2025 that tells you to file with the THRC, or that tells your employees to, is out of date. If your harassment policy names the Commission as the external complaint route, that section needs rewriting.
Deadlines
State complaints under the THRA generally run on a 180-day window from the adverse act
A THRA civil action must be filed within one year after the discriminatory practice ceases
Federal charges with the EEOC in Tennessee are commonly treated as a 180-day window, and work-sharing can preserve rights under both systems
A federal lawsuit follows within 90 days of a Right to Sue notice
The one-year civil action clock is measured from when the practice ceases rather than when it began, which for an ongoing pattern can push the effective window considerably further out than it first appears.
Tennessee in practice
Nashville is both the state capital and the largest city, followed by Memphis, Knoxville, Chattanooga, and Clarksville. Tennessee is one of the few states whose signature product is defined in its own statute: to be labelled Tennessee Whiskey, a spirit must be made in the state and filtered through sugar maple charcoal before ageing, the Lincoln County Process, written into law in 2013.
There is a good piece of Tennessee trivia buried in that. Jack Daniel’s has distilled in Lynchburg since 1866, in Moore County, which is a dry county. The distillery can sell commemorative bottles on site but the county cannot sell its most famous export by the drink.
Between Nashville’s Broadway honky-tonk strip, Memphis on Beale Street, and a large distillery tourism sector, Tennessee employs a great many young hourly staff in exactly the venues where harassment claims arise.
What Tennessee employers actually do
There is no mandate and no prescribed interval, so the cycle is yours. The two practical jobs are getting the external complaint route right in your policy now that the Commission is gone, and holding records long enough to cover a one-year civil action clock that starts when the conduct stops.
A company account handles the second: dated per-employee completion records, a separate supervisor track, and a single export when a charge arrives.
Tennessee sexual harassment training FAQ
Is sexual harassment training required in Tennessee?
No. There is no state training mandate for private employers, no prescribed course length, and no required renewal interval.
How many employees before the Tennessee Human Rights Act applies?
Eight or more within the state, which is a lower threshold than the federal fifteen under Title VII.
Who handles state discrimination complaints now?
The Division of Civil Rights Enforcement under the Attorney General. The Tennessee Human Rights Commission was dissolved on July 1, 2025.
How long does an employee have to sue under the THRA?
A civil action must be filed within one year after the discriminatory practice ceases.
Should I update my harassment policy?
If it names the Tennessee Human Rights Commission as the external complaint route, yes. That body no longer exists.
Harassment training in other states
Requirements differ sharply by state on duration, frequency, and headcount thresholds, so take the version for the state you operate in: Texas, Utah, Rhode Island, and more in the full compliance catalog. If your state sets no mandate, the general non-state-specific course covers the federal baseline. Track completion across a roster from the Learn Brands dashboard.
Buying for a team?
Seats are $18.99 each. Register your business free and assign seats across your whole staff. You can see who has started, who has finished, and when certificates expire from the Learn Brands dashboard.