Tuesday 21 January 2025
On September 30, 2023, Governor Newsom signed into law SB 553, a workplace violence prevention law that imposes significant new occupational safety obligations on nearly all California employers. SB 553, also referred to as Labor Code § 6401.9, most notably requires employers to develop and implement a Workplace Violence Prevention Plan, record violent incidents on a log, and train employees on how to identify and avoid workplace violence. The occupational safety provisions of the law went into effect on July 1, 2024.
Each UC Location has reporting and response obligations for various federal and state laws, including Workplace Violence Prevention (CA LAB Code 6401.9) and the Clery Act. To ensure that incidents of workplace violence are thoroughly captured, accurately documented, and included in the local campus Annual Security Report, we encourage you to report incidents directly to the local Workplace Violence Prevention (WPV) administrator. Any acts of violence or threats indicating an imminent risk of violence should be reported directly to the UC Merced Police Department or the local police department if an employee is away from campus. Timely reporting is essential for maintaining a safe campus environment.
For information on our Location’s Clery Act reporting obligations, resources, and support, visit the campus website or contact the designated local Clery Compliance Officer directly.
While the training does note sexual assault / sexual violence reporting requirements, including to the Title IX Offices, there are additional University personnel who are Responsible Employees under the SVSH Policy.
As a reminder, if a serious injury (i.e., requiring hospitalization) of an employee results from an act of workplace violence, the employer (someone of management or supervisory capacity) is required to report the serious injury to CalOSHA.
Cindi Zimmerman
Workplace Violence Program Administrator
wvp@ucmerced.edu
