California has enacted the country's first general industry workplace violence prevention safety law. The law takes effect on July 1, 2024, and imposes requirements on nearly all California employers, including retail employers.
Senate Bill 553, which is now codified in California Labor Code section 6401.9, requires California employers to adopt a comprehensive Workplace Violence Prevention Plan (WVPP), train employees on workplace violence, and log safety incidents.
Coverage; Exceptions
The WVPP requirement applies to all California employers, employees, workplaces, and employer-provided housing. There are limited exceptions, including:
- Remote employees working at a location of their choosing that
is not under the control of the employer;
- Workplaces where there are fewer than 10 employees working at
the location at a given time and that is not accessible to the
public and the employer complies with Cal/OSHA's injury and
illness prevention program regulation;
- Certain healthcare facilities; and
- Law enforcement agencies and facilities operated by the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
Takeaways
Key takeaways from the new law:
- Employers must establish, implement, and maintain, at all times
in all of the employer's facilities, a WVPP as part of the
injury prevention program. The WVPP can be a standalone plan or
incorporated into a pre-existing Injury and Illness Prevention
Program pursuant to Title 8 of the California Code of Regulations
section 3203.
- If there are different hazards at different locations, then an
employer's WVPP must be customized to the hazards specific to
the particular location. While Cal/OSHA has cautioned against
"top-down" corporate plans, if an employer has consistent
or similar hazards across all of its worksites, the WVPP may be
uniform across multiple locations. Employers must obtain the
"active involvement" of employees in developing their
WVPP.
- Employers must record information in a violent incident log
regarding every incident, post-incident response, and workplace
violence injury investigation required to be performed as part of
the WVPP.
- Animal attacks are specifically considered workplace violence
under SB 553.
- Plans must be reviewed at least once a year, when a deficiency
is observed or becomes apparent, and after the occurrence of a
workplace violence incident.
- Employers must provide effective training to employees that
addresses the workplace violence risks that employees may encounter
in their jobs and at the specific work location.
- The WVPP must be accessible to employees either on the
worksite, posting them in common areas, on a company intranet, or
software platform.
- Employers may not prohibit an employee from, and cannot take punitive or retaliatory action against an employee for, seeking assistance and intervention from local emergency services or law enforcement when a violent incident occurs.
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