California workplace violence prevention plan bill, S.B. 553, signed

Most employers in California will soon be required to develop and implement a written workplace violence prevention plan under a new law — the first of its kind in the United States.

“Everyone deserves to be and feel safe everywhere they are, especially at work,” Gov. Gavin Newsom declared in a signing statement. “This important policy will ensure there is a plan in place at workplaces across our state, in order to help protect California workers from workplace violence.”

While some California employers — primarily in health care settings — have been required to have workplace violence prevention plans since 2017, the new law, S.B. 553, sweeps more broadly. It covers most employers, workplaces and employees, with just a few narrow exceptions that apply to:

• Employers already in compliance with another workplace violence prevention program law or regulation.
• Certain law enforcement agencies.
• Employees working remotely from a location of the employee’s choice that is not under the employer’s control.
• Workplaces where fewer than 10 employees work at any given time and that are not accessible to the public, as long as they are in compliance with California’s Injury and Illness Prevention Program (IIPP) requirements.

Plans are required to include the following elements:

• Effective procedures for involving employees in developing and implementing the plan.
• Methods to coordinate implementation of the plan with other employers when applicable (i.e., at a multi-employer worksite).
• Effective procedures for accepting and responding to reports of workplace violence.
• Procedures for communicating with employees regarding workplace issues.
• Response procedures for actual or potential workplace violence emergencies.
• Procedures for developing and providing employee training.
• Procedures for identifying, evaluating and correcting workplace violence hazards.
• Procedures for post-incident response and investigation.

The law also requires employers to keep a violent incident log containing information about each workplace violence incident, provide effective employee training when the plan is first established and annually thereafter, and maintain certain records for designated time periods.

The workplace violence prevention program requirements take effect July 1, 2024.

In addition to the workplace violence prevention plan requirements, beginning January 1, 2025, employers and authorized collective bargaining representatives will be permitted to seek restraining orders on behalf of their employees who have experienced harassment. Existing law allowed employers to seek such restraining orders only on behalf of an employee who had experienced unlawful violence or a credible threat of violence. (Note: These provisions were also enacted in a separate bill, S.B. 428.)