New Worker Safety Reform Law

On January 1, 2000 major revisions to twelve sections of Californias Labor Code will go into effect. The new law will have a significant impact on workplace safety by substantially increasing civil and criminal penalties for willful, serious, and repeat violations of Cal/OSHA standards that lead to death or serious injury of an employee. Such violations will be prosecuted as a misdemeanor or a felony. The goal of the adopted AB 1127, is to deter violations and reduce injuries by increasing punishment for a small number of employers that willfully or repeatedly violate Cal/OSHA standards. Following is a summary of the new laws provisions.

Extends the deadline for an employee to file a Cal/OSHA discrimination complaint with the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement from 30 days to 6 months. (Section 98.7)
Prohibits any employer who repeatedly violates a standard, order or special order from receiving any penalty adjustment for "good faith or "history" and increases the period of time the Division of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) is required to maintain its inspection records from three to at least seven years. (Section 6429)
Deletes the exemption for employers who are governmental entities from civil penalties but provides reimbursement procedures for public schools, colleges, and universities under certain circumstances. (Section 6434)
Eliminates the requirement that DOSH must prove the employer knew or with reasonable diligence could have known, of the existence of a serious violation as part of its case-in-chief. The burden of proof regarding knowledge will now belong to the employer. DOSH need only prove the issue of serious physical harm to substantiate the serious classification of a citation. The issue of employer knowledge is to be addressed as an affirmative defense. The employer may present an argument that the citation should not be classified as serious because the employer did not know, and could not have known with the exercise of reasonable diligence, of the presence of the violation. (Section 6432)
This section is added to reaffirm the Legislatures concern over repetitive motion injuries and Cal/OSHA Standards Boards continuing duty to adopt standards for ergonomics in the workplace designed to minimize the instances of injury from repetitive motion. (Section 6719)
Codifies the Division of Occupational Healths multiemployer regulation in the statute. (Section 6400)
Increases the statutory maximum civil penalty for a serious violation from $7,000 to $25,000. (Section 6428)
Increases the civil penalty for a failure-to-abate violation from $7,000 to $15,000 per day and makes it a crime for any employer to submit a false signed statement of abatement, with a specified penalty of imprisonment for up to one year, or a fine of up to $30,000 or both. For a corporation or limited liability company, the maximum fine would be up to $300,000. (Section 6430)
Allows Title 8 standards to be admissible in "third party" civil suits and makes inadmissible the testimony of Cal/OSHA compliance personnel about citation issuance, applicability of Title 8 standards, and their "expert" opinion (as opposed to factual information obtained as a witness). (Section 6304.5)
Broadens the term "employees representative" whose complaints must be treated as formal by Cal/OSHA, to include "an attorney, health or safety professional, union representative or representative of a governmental agency..."; requires DOSH to allocate inspection resources to respond first to those situations in which "time is of the essence"; and requires inspections to be conducted within 24 hours of receipt for complaints of serious violations from state or local prosecutors. (Section 6309)
Increases the monetary fine and prison time a court may impose on employers convicted of misdemeanor violations of Title 8 and specifies higher fines when corporations or limited liability companies (as opposed to individuals) are charged with these violations. (Section 6423)
This section is amended in three ways: (a) it increases the monetary fine and prison time a court may impose on employers convicted of a willful misdemeanor or felony violations of Title 8 causing death or permanent or prolonged impairment; (b) specifies higher fines when corporations or limited liability companies are charged with these violations; and (c) applies the definition of "willful" as found in the California Penal Code rather than the definition found in Title 8. (Section 6425)

"Information or recommendations contained in these articles were obtained from sources believed to be reliable at the date of publication. Information is only advisory and does not presume to be exhaustive or inclusive of all workplace hazards or situations."

The above evaluations and/or recommendations are for general guidance only and should not be relied upon for legal compliance purposes. They are based solely on the information provided to us and relate only to those conditions specifically discussed. We do not make any warranty, expressed or implied, that your workplace is safe or healthful or that it complies with all laws, regulations or standards.