SB 553 for Performing Arts Organizations
Creating an effective workplace violence prevention plan
On Wednesday, September 11th,
The Requirements
Who
All businesses in California with 10 or more employees are legally required to have a Workplace Violence Prevention Plan as of July 1st, 2024. In the performing arts, one of the first big question is: who counts as an employee?
The CA State Compensation Insurance Fund has created guidance to help you identify who counts as an employee versus an independent contractor. It’s fundamental that anyone operating in an employee capacity is an official employee of your business. If your business has more than 10 employees, you are legally beholden to the requirements of SB 553.
At the same time, many performing arts organizations do also work with volunteers and genuine temporary workers or independent contractors. These individuals are not technically covered by SB 553. Still, you may have other legal and ethical responsibilities in your relations with them, and it’s a good idea as part of your overall safety planning/training to evaluate Workplace Violence Prevention concerns.
What
SB 553 foresees the creation and regular updating of a written Workplace Violence Prevention Plan (WVPP). The WVPP should include:
- The names of persons responsible for implementing the WVPP
- Procedures for employee involvement in developing and implementing the plan
- Procedures to identify and evaluate workplace violence hazards and to correct any hazards identified
- Procedures for handling and responding to reports of workplace violence
- Plan for communicating with employees regarding workplace violence
The Fact Sheet for Employers (PDF) and WVPP Model Plan (.DOC) go into more detail about what to include in the written plan.
In addition to the written Workplace Violence Prevention Plan (WVPP), under SB 553 employers must:
- Maintain a log of all incidents of workplace violence even if the incident did not result in injury*
- Provide employees with an initial WVPP training and annually thereafter, as well as training when new workplace violence hazards are identified
* This is a separate mandate from the California requirement, unrelated to SB 553, that all employers log and report incidents of serious injury, illness or death (more info on how to record and how to report these kinds of incidents).
How
You’re not alone as you develop your plan! Cal-OSHA hosts a fantastic resource portal that includes links to templates, a continually updated FAQ section, and more. The guidance relevant to performing arts organizations is available under: Workplace Violence Prevention for General Industry (Non-Health Care Settings)
View/Download the CAL-OSHA Factsheets
These PDFs are useful overview documents, summarizing the requirements of SB 553 from the perspective of employers and employees respectively.
For Employers
For Workers
Writing An Effective WVPP
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Case Study: WVPP Employee Training
California Center for the Arts, Escondido
During the webinar, Matthew Ché Kowal of Majestic Collaborations shared the a slide deck that he developed with the California Center for the Arts in Escondido to conduct WVPP training. Takeaways: design matters. Create simple, clearly organized, attractive training materials.
The Legislation… and How to Influence It
Read Senate Bill 553
While CAL-OSHA’s resources are a helpful place to start, every employer should really go through the text of CA Bill 553 itself to make sure they can justify how their WVPP fulfills the requirements of the law.
Provide Input to the Proposed Regulations
Also SB 553 is already law in California, the government has not yet issued specific guidance for how to implement the new standards. These Proposed Regulations are being developed through a process of feedback and evaluation. Your input and advocacy can help ensure the proposed regulations meet the unique needs of performing arts organizations.
Other Resources
The following resources are not specific to topics of workplace violence prevention plans or SB 553. However they do provide great perspective into a variety of issues faced by artists and performing arts workers.
The Art of Mass Gatherings Podcast explores the intersection of festivals and community resilience, focusing on the powerful role that arts and events can play in climate and disaster preparedness. Individual episodes each feature an invited guest and focus on a variety of topics in safety, accessibility, and sustainable event design.
Created by the Association of Performing Arts Professionals, the award-winning podcast ARTS. WORK. LIFE, features bold, untold stories from arts workers about what it’s like to work in the performing arts. We love their behind-the-scenes look at how fellow professionals are navigating industry challenges and thriving in the field, sharing both moments of failure and heartbreak as well as triumph and success. During the webinar, Matt mentioned Episode Z.
The SB 553 webinar was brought to you by
