The campaign, led by 121RN, the SEIU Nurse Alliance of California and the SEIU California State Council, included many rank and file members from all SEIU Locals in California and other California unions.

 

At its October 20, 2016 meeting, the California Occupational Health and Safety Standards Board voted unanimously to adopt a proposal for a groundbreaking CalOSHA Workplace Violence Prevention in Health Care Standard.  A short video of the vote to adopt the CalOSHA Workplace Violence Prevention in Health Care Standard is available for viewing:

 

Vote to Adopt the CalOSHA Workplace Violence Prevention in Health Care Standard, Oct 20 2016  (7:33 mins)  https://youtu.be/nvGCuMY_P40

 

The video includes comments by the Standards Board members on the need for this standard and praising the many nurses and healthcare workers who testified during the almost three year development of the proposal.  The proposal adopted can be found at http://www.dir.ca.gov/oshsb/documents/Workplace-Violence-Prevention-in-Health-Care-txtbdconsider.pdf .

 

In February 2014, SEIU Local 121RN and the SEIU Nurse Alliance of California filed a petition requesting the CalOSHA Standards Board to adopt a new standard to provide health care workers with specific protections against workplace violence.

 

Workplace violence is a major hazard faced by many healthcare workers.  A recent report from the General Accounting Office (GAO) found that health care workers face rates of workplace violence 5 to 12 times higher than the estimated rates for workers overall.

 

This standard establishes mandatory minimum requirements for public and private healthcare employers to reduce the risk of workplace violence to employees.  Healthcare employers are required to conduct a workplace violence risk assessment and develop a site-specific workplace violence program. Workers and their unions should be involved in the risk assessment and site-specific program development, including the training and annual program review.

 This standard covers many private and public health care facilities in California, including general acute care hospitals, acute psychiatric hospitals, special hospitals, hospital based outpatient clinics (HBOCs) and other operations located at a health facility, and all off-site operations included within the license of the health facility, home health care and home-based hospice, emergency medical services and medical transport.  Unfortunately, ancillary health care operations, included in the original proposal were removed from the final standard.  SEIU is committed to efforts to include workers at these operations in future rulemaking.  The standard is expected to go into effect in 2017.

Federal OSHA is currently considering moving forward on a similar national standard.