California · Labor Code 6401.9 · SB 553
A Workplace Violence Prevention Plan written for your worksite.
Nearly every California employer has needed a written Workplace Violence Prevention Plan since 1 July 2024, under Labor Code 6401.9. Cal/OSHA looks for a plan that is specific to your site, available to employees and inspectors at all times, and reviewed each year.
ClarAudit builds that plan from your answers: the written plan plus the incident log, training record, hazard inspection record, post-incident form, and employee notice.
One-time, USD. No subscription, no account.
What is included
- The complete written plan
- Violent incident log
- Training record and outline
- Hazard inspection and correction record
- Post-incident investigation form
- Employee notice
What is not included
Legal advice, ongoing monitoring, and the training itself. The plan is written to the structure of Cal/OSHA's model plan and covers the plan elements in Labor Code 6401.9(c)(2)(A) through (L).
Common questions
Who is exempt?
A few employers are outside Labor Code 6401.9(b)(2): certain health care settings under Title 8 section 3342, and a site with fewer than 10 employees at any given time that is closed to the public and complies with the Injury and Illness Prevention Program in Title 8 section 3203. Employees who telework from a location of their own choice are also outside the requirement. If you are unsure, the questionnaire flags a likely exemption and lets you keep a plan anyway.
Does one plan cover several locations?
No. Labor Code 6401.9 asks for a plan specific to a worksite, so each site needs its own. This generator builds one plan for one site. A multi-site employer buys one plan per site.
Is this legal advice?
No. ClarAudit is an information service that produces a draft from your answers and the text of Labor Code 6401.9. The employer is responsible for putting the plan into practice, training on it, and keeping it current. Review by qualified counsel is recommended for material decisions.
What happens to my answers?
Your answers stay in your browser during the session and in the checkout record while your documents are built. A backup copy of your ZIP is deleted automatically within 48 hours. There are no accounts, and nothing else is kept.
What if I already have a plan?
You can still use this to produce a site-specific version, or to cover parts your current plan is missing. Cal/OSHA looks for a plan that names responsible persons, lists per-area hazards and controls, and is reviewed each year. Compare what you have against the plan elements in Labor Code 6401.9(c)(2)(A) through (L).
What changes on 1 January 2027?
The Standards Board must adopt a workplace violence regulation by 31 December 2026. The 22 July 2026 draft proposes additional practices, such as accepting anonymous reports and offering counseling after an incident. Plans generated now already include these practices, and when the regulation takes effect we will update the generator.
See a plan before you pay
This is what the generator produces, using a fictional Sacramento shop. Your version is built from your own answers.
ClarAudit · Sample
Workplace Violence Prevention Plan
Alder Street Hardware · 512 Alder Street, Sacramento, CA 95811
Definitions
Quoted from Labor Code 6401.9(a).
- Workplace violence
"Workplace violence" means any act of violence or threat of violence that occurs in a place of employment.
"Workplace violence" includes, but is not limited to, the following:
The threat or use of physical force against an employee that results in, or has a high likelihood of resulting in, injury, psychological trauma, or stress, regardless of whether the employee sustains an injury.
An incident involving a threat or use of a firearm or other dangerous weapon, including the use of common objects as weapons, regardless of whether the employee sustains an injury.
The following four workplace violence types:
"Workplace violence" does not include lawful acts of self-defense or defense of others.
- Threat of violence
"Threat of violence" means any verbal or written statement, including, but not limited to, texts, electronic messages, social media messages, or other online posts, or any behavioral or physical conduct, that conveys an intent, or that is reasonably perceived to convey an intent, to cause physical harm or to place someone in fear of physical harm, and that serves no legitimate purpose.
- Type 1 violence
"Type 1 violence," which means workplace violence committed by a person who has no legitimate business at the worksite, and includes violent acts by anyone who enters the workplace or approaches workers with the intent to commit a crime.
- Type 2 violence
"Type 2 violence," which means workplace violence directed at employees by customers, clients, patients, students, inmates, or visitors.
- Type 3 violence
"Type 3 violence," which means workplace violence against an employee by a present or former employee, supervisor, or manager.
- Type 4 violence
"Type 4 violence," which means workplace violence committed in the workplace by a person who does not work there, but has or is known to have had a personal relationship with an employee.
- Engineering controls
"Engineering controls" mean an aspect of the built space or a device that removes a hazard from the workplace or creates a barrier between the worker and the hazard.
- Work practice controls
"Work practice controls" means procedures and rules which are used to effectively reduce workplace violence hazards.
- Emergency
"Emergency" means unanticipated circumstances that can be life threatening or pose a risk of significant injuries to employees or other persons.
- Plan
"Plan" means the workplace violence prevention plan required by this section.
- Log
"Log" means the violent incident log required by this section.
Responsibility
The plan administrator for this site is Dana Okafor, Store Manager ((916) 555-0142; dana@alderhardware.example).
| Name or job title | Role in the plan |
|---|---|
| Sam Reyes, Assistant Manager | Incident response |
| Jo Lin, Shift Lead | Hazard inspections |
Hazard Identification and Evaluation
Foreseeable types of workplace violence at this site: Type 1 (No legitimate business at the worksite); Type 2 (Customers, clients, or visitors).
| Work area | Workplace violence hazards |
|---|---|
| Sales floor | Employees handle cash or valuable goods; Frequent contact with the public |
| Stockroom | No specific workplace violence hazards identified at initial assessment; included in periodic inspections. |
| Parking lot | Work late at night or early in the morning |
| Cash office | Employees handle cash or valuable goods |
Your compliance pack
| Document | Length |
|---|---|
| Workplace Violence Prevention Plan | 11–15 pages |
| Violent Incident Log | 12 pages |
| Training Record and Outline | 3 pages |
| Hazard Inspection and Correction Record | 3 pages |
| Post-Incident Investigation Form | 3 pages |
| Employee Notice | 2 pages |
Incident Reporting Procedure
Employees may report a workplace violence incident, threat, or concern in 3 ways, including to Dana Okafor, Store Manager, who is not the reporting employee's supervisor.
Emergency Response Procedures
In a workplace violence emergency, employees are alerted and directed to the assembly point at Front parking lot, north end by the flagpole.
Hazard Correction
The employer corrects identified workplace violence hazards in a timely manner, in order of priority, using engineering and work practice controls.
Training and Instruction
Training is provided by Dana Okafor, Store Manager, and new employees receive initial training before the employee's first shift.
Post-Incident Response and Investigation
After an incident, the employer, led by Sam Reyes, Assistant Manager, arranges medical care, offers counseling, debriefs, and evaluates the hazards and controls.
Recordkeeping
Records are kept by Dana Okafor, Store Manager at Store office filing cabinet, for the retention periods the statute sets.
Review and Revision
The plan is reviewed and revised at least once a year, when a deficiency is observed, and after a workplace violence incident.
What Cal/OSHA requires in the plan
Labor Code 6401.9(c)(2) sets out the elements the written plan must address.
- (A)Names or job titles of the persons responsible for implementing the plan.
- (B)Effective procedures to obtain the active involvement of employees and authorized employee representatives in developing and implementing the plan
- (C)Methods the employer will use to coordinate implementation of the plan with other employers, when applicable, to ensure that those employers and employees understand their respective roles, as provided in the plan.
- (D)Effective procedures for the employer to accept and respond to reports of workplace violence, and to prohibit retaliation against an employee who makes such a report.
- (E)Effective procedures to ensure that supervisory and nonsupervisory employees comply with the plan
- (F)Effective procedures to communicate with employees regarding workplace violence matters
- (G)Effective procedures to respond to actual or potential workplace violence emergencies
- (H)Procedures to develop and provide the training required in subdivision (e).
- (I)Procedures to identify and evaluate workplace violence hazards, including, but not limited to, scheduled periodic inspections to identify unsafe conditions and work practices and employee reports and concerns.
- (J)Procedures to correct workplace violence hazards identified and evaluated in subparagraph (I) in a timely manner
- (K)Procedures for postincident response and investigation.
- (L)Procedures to review the effectiveness of the plan and revise the plan as needed
- (M)Procedures or other information required by the division and standards board as being necessary and appropriate to protect the health and safety of employees, pursuant to subdivision (h).
Note on element (M), written by ClarAudit and not statutory text: as at 18 September 2026, the Division of Occupational Safety and Health and the Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board had not adopted standards under Labor Code 6401.9(h), so no additional procedures were required under element (M). Subdivision (h) requires those standards to be adopted no later than 31 December 2026. Check for adopted standards before relying on this note.
Why the free model plan is not enough
Cal/OSHA publishes a free model plan as a fillable template. Its own FAQ says that “use of Cal/OSHA's model written WVPP does not ensure compliance” (Cal/OSHA Workplace Violence FAQ).
The reason is the site-specific requirement: the plan has to name your responsible persons, list the hazards and controls for each of your work areas, and set your own reporting and emergency procedures.
ClarAudit fills those in from your answers, so the plan reads as your worksite's plan rather than a blank template.
What is coming in 2027
The Standards Board must adopt a workplace violence regulation by 31 December 2026. The 22 July 2026 draft proposes additional practices, such as accepting anonymous reports, adding a non-supervisor reporting route, and offering counseling after an incident. Plans generated now already include these practices, and when the regulation takes effect we will update the generator.
PASSAGES PRESENTED AS STATUTORY ARE QUOTED FROM CALIFORNIA LABOR CODE 6401.9 AS IN EFFECT 18 SEPTEMBER 2026 · ALL OTHER TEXT IN THIS DOCUMENT IS DRAFTED BY CLARAUDIT FROM THE EMPLOYER'S ANSWERS · THIS IS AN INFORMATION SERVICE AND IS NOT LEGAL ADVICE · REGULATIONS ADOPTED UNDER LABOR CODE 6401.9(h) MAY IMPOSE ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS