Workplace violence training has a practical purpose: employees should understand what conduct must be prevented, where concerns can be reported and how the company's internal mechanisms are meant to work. Even a well-produced presentation is of little use if it names a reporting channel that no longer exists or managers do not know how to respond to a sensitive report.
Article 16 of Mexico's Federal Labor Law, amended on January 15, 2026, requires employers to train their personnel to prevent and eliminate violence against women. This sits alongside Article 132(XXXI), which requires a protocol agreed with employees, and NOM-035-STPS-2018, which addresses prevention of workplace violence, information, training and safe, confidential reporting mechanisms.
This guide helps employers review training content, audiences, procedures and supporting evidence. These provisions do not establish a universal rule that one annual presentation and an attendance certificate constitute complete compliance.
The program must be linked to the actual prevention system: current policies, known channels, prepared decision-makers and evidence that helps identify weaknesses.
- 01Applicable policy
- 02Role-specific learning
- 03Reporting and escalation
- 04Evidence and improvement
Illustrative implementation sequence; not a certification or an official one-size-fits-all process.
Workplace violence training: three legal instruments with different roles
The applicable instruments concern related but distinct issues. Article 16 of the Federal Labor Law requires employers to train staff to prevent and eliminate violence against women. Article 132(XXXI) requires employers, in agreement with employees, to implement a protocol to prevent gender discrimination and address violence, sexual harassment and workplace sexual harassment, as well as the other objectives specified by that provision.
NOM-035 addresses psychosocial risk factors and workplace violence through prevention policies, information, secure and confidential reporting channels and measures tailored to the workplace. Section 8.2 also contemplates training and awareness for managers and supervisors in leadership and prevention, as applicable.
The ILO Violence and Harassment Convention (No. 190), which Mexico has ratified, supplies a broader international framework for violence and harassment in the world of work. It does not replace domestic requirements or impose one uniform training schedule or attendance format by itself.
Employee training
Prevention and elimination of violence against women; requirement added in January 2026.
Agreed protocol
Gender-discrimination prevention and procedures for violence and sexual harassment, alongside the provision's other objectives.
Prevention framework
Policy, measures, information, confidential reporting and workplace-specific preventive actions.
The Federal Labor Law, NOM-035 and Convention No. 190 have different scopes. Training content and scheduling need to reflect applicable requirements and workplace circumstances; these three instruments do not establish one universal annual certificate.
Distributing a policy is not the same as preparing employees to act
An employer may have sent staff a copy of its protocol, uploaded a policy to the intranet or collected written acknowledgments. Those steps may support communication, but they do not by themselves establish that employees understand prohibited behavior or know what to do if an issue arises.
Training calls for plain-language explanations, realistic workplace scenarios, practice in making basic decisions and confirmation that people know the relevant routes. Sessions should teach the reporting contacts and responsibilities that actually exist. Any gap between a global corporate policy and the local operation should be resolved before training is delivered.
The aim is not to turn every employee into an investigator. People need to recognize relevant signals, seek guidance and use the appropriate mechanism. The methodology for internal workplace violence investigations is a separate, specialized subject.
Distribute policies, publish procedures and share current contact details.
Explain realistic situations, practice decisions and confirm understanding.
An up-to-date document exists and is consistent with the applicable law.
People recognize relevant conduct, understand expectations and know where to seek help.
Managers and contact points understand initial handling and escalation.
Questions and gaps are referred to those responsible for addressing them.
What each audience needs to learn and be able to do
All employees need access to core information, but those receiving complaints, supervising teams or deciding remedial action need deeper role-specific guidance. Segmenting the program avoids generic sessions that omit practical decision points and overly legal presentations that obscure instructions for employees.
Reporting options should remain workable even when a concern involves an employee's direct manager. Training should explain that confidentiality means carefully limited access and proportionate handling; it is not a promise of absolute secrecy or a reason to prevent a necessary factual review.
The division of tasks in the following matrix is a recommended training model that must be checked against each employer's actual protocol. It does not create a statutory committee requirement for every organization.
Relevant conduct, discrimination, prevention principles and channels for guidance.
Recognize a concern and know whom to contact without taking on investigatory functions.
Limits of informal resolution, anti-retaliation, confidentiality and escalation.
Receive information respectfully, preserve what is necessary and refer it without prejudgment.
Protocols, authority, records, conflicts of interest and proportionate handling of information.
Activate the relevant process and coordinate follow-up under defined responsibilities.
Expected conduct, resources, independence and institutional responsibilities.
Ensure that channels, trained personnel and corrective processes are in place.
Illustrative scenario: an employee approaches a supervisor to raise a concern about possible workplace violence and asks what happens next.
Do not dismiss the report, reach premature conclusions or promise absolute secrecy.
Show the employee the applicable route where the supervisor is not the designated recipient.
Limit sharing, consider any immediate protection needs and record what is appropriate.
Five checks before planning the next training session
Before scheduling training, HR, Legal or Compliance should verify that policies, protocols, reporting channels and responsible personnel are up to date. Teaching a disabled email address, a committee with no current members or a procedure inconsistent with Mexican working arrangements can create confusion precisely when clarity matters most.
Preparation also means defining who should attend, using scenarios that avoid identifying sensitive individuals, checking the legal framework and deciding which records are appropriate. Trainers should prepare to respond to difficult questions without disclosing actual cases or assigning blame to identifiable people.
The following sequence is a recommended operational planning process, rather than a literal checklist prescribed by one legal provision.
- Confirm what is current
Check the protocol, reporting channel, members, contact points, internal timelines and responsibilities.
- Define each audience
Prepare shared content plus specific modules for staff, managers and process owners.
- Review learning scenarios
Use illustrative cases and accessible language without revealing actual confidential matters.
- Plan proportionate evidence
Decide how attendance, materials, coverage and understanding will be recorded.
- Act on identified gaps
Assign questions, inconsistencies and follow-up needs to accountable decision-makers.
NOM-035 requirements vary with the size of the workplace
NOM-035 establishes baseline obligations for workplaces of every size, including a prevention policy, measures addressing workplace violence and relevant information. However, the required identification of psychosocial risk factors and assessment of the organizational environment depend on the number of employees at each workplace.
Workplaces with up to 15 employees follow the basic provisions specified by the standard. Those with 16 to 50 employees must also identify and analyze psychosocial risk factors. Workplaces with more than 50 employees must additionally assess the organizational environment. Requiring the same evaluation process at every site without considering its size would misstate the standard.
Training should be informed by the relevant findings from the preventive framework, including leadership, workload, working relationships, communications, reporting and follow-up measures. Reports of particular incidents must be handled under the applicable process, with appropriate attention to privacy.
Basic NOM-035 prevention policies, actions and communication requirements.
Additional identification and analysis of psychosocial risk factors under the standard.
Additional organizational environment assessment under the standard.
Which training records to keep and how to act on what they reveal
Employers should be able to establish which training was delivered, when, to whom, which topics were covered and which actual reporting mechanisms were explained. Such records support review and improvement. However, attendance alone does not prove comprehension, successful implementation of a protocol or the absence of workplace violence.
It is useful to connect participant records and training materials with proportionate checks for understanding and a way to follow up on identified gaps. For example, if several supervisors cannot identify where to escalate a report, repeating the same slide is not enough: the employer should examine the escalation process, contact details and role-specific preparation.
Our article on labor inspections, complaints and traceability explores the separate subject of documentation in regulatory and dispute contexts. Training records and sensitive details should not circulate without limits; access, retention and purpose should be proportionate.
Date, groups invited and attendance under appropriate access controls.
Training version, topics, scenarios and the actual channels explained.
Questions, exercises or feedback proportionate to each audience.
Identified gaps, an accountable owner and a decision about improvements.
Before closing a training program, check that the system actually works
The final review should turn on concrete questions: Does the material reflect current law? Do the reporting channels work? Does each audience understand its responsibilities? Is there evidence of what was delivered and what needs follow-up? Have known weaknesses been assigned to someone who can correct them?
Finishing a session should not automatically close the underlying action plan. A training event may be complete while improvements to protocols, responsibilities or reporting systems remain pending. Keeping these two outcomes separate supports an ongoing and verifiable prevention approach.
Seven checks before closing the program
Training matters when people know what to do
Workplace violence training should operate within a coherent system: clear rules, reporting mechanisms, accountable personnel and useful evidence. Legal obligations are not fulfilled simply by producing attendance certificates; the arrangements before, during and after a session all matter.
Employers can align training with actual working conditions and the internal mechanisms that need to function when concerns arise. De la Vega & Martínez Rojas approaches this work through employment compliance, preventive documentation and practical internal procedures.
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