New Law Requires Most California Employers to Develop a Workplace Violence Prevention Program Your 4-Step Compliance Plan By Fisher Phillips A new law that recently took effect requires most California employers to develop a workplace violence prevention program, and if you aren’t familiar with your new obligations, now is the perfect time for you to ensure your organization is up to speed. The law, which took effect on July 1, requires each employer to create and implement a written Workplace Violence Prevention Plan (WVPP), train employees and supervisors on workplace violence matters, create and maintain a violence incident log, and keep records of all training and violent workplace incidents that occur. Here is your fourstep compliance plan to make sure you are following the new law. QUICK BACKGROUND Although the new law might seem burdensome, you can take some solace knowing that the final version of the law scaled back from the more challenging requirements. California lawmakers originally pushed an aggressive legislative proposal that would have required almost every employer in the state to comply with a broad and comprehensive workplace violence prevention standard developed with healthcare employers in mind. Thankfully for employers, SB 553 was amended late in the legislative session to essentially codify a separate proposal that Cal/OSHA had already been working on and remove some of the more controversial and burdensome requirements. As a result, many business groups dropped their opposition to the bill, and Gov. Newsom signed it on Sept. 30, 2023. But the new law still imposes significant obligations on almost all non-healthcare California employers that took effect on July 1. Here’s what you need to know about the specific requirements and the four steps you should take to comply: 1. Create a Workplace Violence Prevention Plan The Workplace Violence Prevention Plan must be in writing and be easily accessible to employees. It must identify who is responsible for implementing the plan and include effective procedures: • To obtain the active involvement of employees and authorized employee representatives in developing and implementing the plan. • For the employer to accept and respond to reports of workplace violence. • To prohibit retaliation against an employee who makes such a report of workplace violence. • To ensure that supervisory and nonsupervisory employees comply with the plan. • To communicate with employees regarding workplace violence matters. 14 SAN DIEGO DEALER
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