California state senate bill aims to protect employees from workplace violence
A bill aimed at protecting workers at their jobs is just one vote away from passing through the California State Senate.
Motivated by the 2021 mass shooting that killed nine employees at San Jose's Valley Transportation Authority, State Senator Dave Cortese sponsored this bill with the hope that it would better prepare businesses against any type of workplace violence.
"Even though VTA was a government entity, they didn't have a plan for how to get police officers into the building," he said. "If there was a shooter, they had never done drills like that before, they didn't have an exit strategy for the employees, so people were just kind of trying to make up things as they went along."
Cortese added that all employers should have a contingency plan for all types of violence, whether it's an active shooter or confrontations with aggressive customers.
While it seemed like a rather uncontroversial bill, some small business owners raised concerns about the costs and practicality surrounding the proposal.
"How many times have you seen a shoplifter kill somebody in a convenience store," said Rima Madan, whose family owns convenience and liquor stores across the San Gabriel Valley."This bill is going to take it all, from all of us. All our dreams."
She added that small businesses can neither afford nor need active shooter training. Madan also shared her worries about the requirements to have designated security personnel.
"We don't have that kind of violence that they're trying to curb," said Madan. "They are trying to bunch in hospitals, medical people as well as big businesses as well as small businesses into one group. That is misguided."
Madan also claimed that she would have to log every theft that happens in her family's stories, something that happens every day. She said that if her business fails to do so, she could be fined $18,000.
"You're going to be penalized for not maintaining logs," said Madan. "How is that going to stop a shooting and violent incidents?"
Cortese said Madan had misunderstood many parts of the bill. He claimed that there is nothing in it that requires any business to spend any money or hire anyone for security.
After weeks of protests and what he calls misinformation, the bill faces its final vote next week. Cortese said it simply builds upon the injury prevention plans already require employers to protect their workers from hazardous materials, slips and falls as well as perilous situations.
"It's adding workplace violence as an additional element to those plans," said Cortese. "You need to also protect people from violent outbursts and that's all the bill does. It just adds that element and it adds it to a plan that each employer is supposed to keep."
Cortese added that senators amended the bill to remove the controversial references to how workers should handle shoplifting. Small business owners believed that portion would make it illegal to confront thieves.
