Senate Bill S1936

                                BILL NUMBER:S1936

TITLE OF BILL:  An act to amend the labor law, in relation to developing
and  implementing  programs  to  prevent  workplace  violence  in public
schools

PURPOSE:  This bill amends section 27-b of  the  Labor  Law  to  include
public  schools within the provisions of current law designed to require
public employers to develop and implement programs to prevent  workplace
violence.

SUMMARY  OF PROVISIONS:  An amendment is made within section 27-b of the
Labor law.

EXISTING LAW:  In 2006, public schools were excluded  as  an  'employer'
based  on  an  established  amendment within the Labor law. Since public
schools are excluded as an employer, they do not  have  to  develop  and
implement workplace violence protection programs.

JUSTIFICATION:  Workplace violence is an increasingly visible element in
today's  workplaces. This bill would assist both employers and employees
in ensuring a safe work environment.

Workplace violence is now one of the leading causes of death on the  job
in  the  united States and the leading cause of workplace fatalities for
women. Enactment of this bill would require school  districts,  with  at
              

least  20  full-time  permanent  employees,  to  develop  and  implement
programs to prevent workplace  violence,  must  evaluate  the  potential
risks of workplace violence that exist within their workplaces, and then
develop and implement a written workplace violence prevention program to
prevent  and  minimize the hazard of workplace violence to their employ-
ees.

Violence is a substantial contributor to occupational injury and  death,
and  homicide has become the second leading cause of occupational injury
death. Each week, an average of 20 workers are murdered and  18,000  are
assaulted while at work or on duty. Nonfatal assaults result in millions
of lost workdays and cost workers millions of dollars in lost wages.

Workplace  violence  is  clustered in certain occupational settings, For
example, the retail trade and service industries account for  more  than
half of workplace homicides and 85% of nonfatal workplace assaults.

Taxicab  drivers  have  the  highest  risk of workplace homicides of any
occupational group. Workers in  health  care,  community  services,  and
retail settings are at increased risk of nonfatal assaults. Risk factors
for  workplace violence include dealing with the public, the exchange of
money, and the delivery of services or goods, prevention strategies  for
minimizing  the  risk of workplace violence include (but are not limited
to) cash-handling policies, physical separation of workers from  custom-

ers,  good  lighting,  security  devices,  escort services, and employee
training.

A  workplace  violence  prevention  program  should include a system for
documenting incidents, procedures to be taken in the event of incidents,
and open communication between employers and workers.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:  2009-2010: S.2124 Passed Labor Committee;  Commit-
ted to Finance 2011-2012: S.1257-A - Referred to Labor Committee

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:  Fiscal implications of $287,000 for the Department
of Labor and the hiring of three new inspectors.

EFFECTIVE DATE:  This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth
day after it shall have become a law, with provisions.