Existing law, the California Refinery and Chemical Plant Worker Safety Act of 1990, requires the Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board and the Division of Occupational Safety and Health to promote worker safety through implementation of training and process safety management practices in refineries, chemical plants, and other appropriate facilities, including by adopting process safety management standards and regulations. The act defines “process safety management” and other terms for its purposes. The act also requires an employer to develop and maintain written safety information, emergency action plans, operating procedures, procedures to manage changes, and inspection and testing programs.

This bill would require an employer, in consultation with employees and employee representatives, to develop, implement, and maintain a written plan to effectively provide for employee participation in all process safety management elements. The bill would also require, on or before April 1, 2027, an employer, in consultation with employee and employee representatives, to develop and implement stop work procedures and procedures for reporting and responding to hazards, as specified. The bill would require an employer to document specific information relating to a partial or complete shut down of an operation or process and reports of hazards. The bill would provide how employees who are and who are not represented by an authorized collective bargaining agent participate in the development of these plans and procedures.

7860.5.

(a) In consultation with employees and employee representatives, an employer shall develop, implement, and maintain a written plan to effectively provide for employee participation in all process safety management elements. The plan shall include provisions that provide for all of the following:

(1) Effective participation by affected operating and maintenance employees and employee representatives, throughout all phases, in performing a process hazard analysis (PHA), damage mechanism review (DMR), hazard control analysis (HCA), management of change (MOC), management of organizational change assessment (MOOC), process safety culture assessment (PSCA), incident, investigations, safeguard protection analysis (SPA), and pre start-up safety review (PSSR).

(2) Effective participation by affected operating and maintenance employees and employee representatives, throughout all phases, in the development, training, implementation, and maintenance of the process safety management elements.

(3) Access by employees and employee representatives to all documents or information developed or collected by the employer pursuant to this section, including information that might be subject to protection as a trade secret.

(b) An authorized collective bargaining agent may select one or more employees to participate in any of the following:

(1) Overall process safety management program development and implementation planning.

(2) A project safety management team or other activity taken pursuant to this section.

(c) For employees who are not represented by an authorized collective bargaining agent, the employer shall establish effective procedures in consultation with employees for the selection of employee representatives.

(d) This section shall not preclude the employer from requiring an employee or employee representative to whom information is made available pursuant to paragraph (3) of subdivision (a) to enter into a confidentiality agreement prohibiting them from disclosing information, as set forth in subdivision (i) of Section 5194 of Title 8 of the California Code of Regulations.

(e) On or before April 1, 2027, an employer, in consultation with employees and employee representatives, shall develop and implement all of the following:

(1) Effective stop work procedures that ensure all of the following:

(A) The authority of any employee, including an employee of a contractor, to refuse to perform a task if doing so could reasonably result in death or serious physical harm.

(B) The authority of any employee, including an employee of a contractor, to recommend to the operator in charge of a unit that an operation or process be partially or completely shut down based on a process safety hazard.

(C) The authority of the qualified operator in charge of a unit to partially or completely shut down an operation or process based on a process safety hazard.

(2) Effective procedures to ensure the right of any employee, including an employee of a contractor, to anonymously report hazards. The employer shall respond in writing within 30 calendar days to written hazard reports submitted by an employee, an employee representative, contractor, employee of a contractor, or contractor employee representative. The employer shall prioritize and promptly respond to and correct hazards that present the potential for death or serious physical harm.

(f) An employer shall document all of the following:

(1) Recommendations to partially or completely shut down an operation or process.

(2) Partial or complete shutdown of an operation or process.

(3) Written reports of hazards and the employer’s response.