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As summer approaches, California employers should remember that it’s time to review their workplace violence prevention plans and conduct their annual workplace violence prevention training.
As a reminder, Labor Code section 6401.9 requires employers to review the effectiveness of their workplace violence prevention plans at least annually, after a workplace violence incident, and whenever a deficiency becomes apparent. The law went into effect on July 1, 2024, so for many employers, the annual compliance deadline is right around the corner.
Employers must, at a minimum, review the violent incident log, the procedures for obtaining the active involvement of employees, and the effectiveness of the plan. To evaluate effectiveness, employers should confirm that the plan is still correct: the person responsible for the plan is correctly identified, reporting channels remain clear, emergency and incident response procedures still work in practice, and that investigation and communication procedures and requirements are clear and being followed. Employers should also review incident investigations from the prior year to see what, if anything, could be learned.
The law requires not only an annual review, but also annual training. Employers must conduct training on all the required topics in the law, including workplace violence hazards specific to the employees’ jobs, strategies to avoid physical harm, and how to report workplace violence to the employer or law enforcement.
On April 23, 2026, Cal/OSHA posted a revised draft for a workplace violence prevention regulation that would broaden the scope of the law to include additional employers and add definitions, plan requirements, post-incident procedures, recordkeeping, and training. Because the proposal is still in draft form, employers’ current compliance obligations remain grounded in Labor Code section 6401.9.
Employers that have not yet calendared annual workplace violence prevention plan review and retraining dates may want to do so now, especially if their original rollout occurred in spring or early summer 2024. A short refresher now may help avoid larger compliance issues later.
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