California groups workplace violence into four types. SB 553 under Labor Code §6401.9 requires your written plan to address the types that fit your operations.
Most California businesses face Type 2 and Type 3. If customers, patients, or the public enter your space, that is Type 2. If employees share shifts, registers, or break rooms, that is Type 3. Naming your actual types is step one of the hazard assessment.
The 4 types defined
The DIR model uses the same four categories as §6401.9. Use them verbatim so log and WVPP match.
| Type | Who commits it | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Type 1 | Stranger with no legitimate business purpose | Robbery at convenience store, trespass after hours |
| Type 2 | Customer, client, patient, student, or anyone receiving service | Threat at clinic front desk, shopper shoving past register |
| Type 3 | Current or former employee or supervisor | Argument in kitchen, threat after write-up |
| Type 4 | Person with personal relationship to employee, not employed there | Partner showing up at worksite, family dispute spilling onto floor |
Type 1 gets attention. Type 2 and 3 create citations. A retail shop with a locked back door can still fail if it never assessed counter contact or shift overlap.
Before, teams used one generic plan. “We handle violence as it comes.” After, each worksite has a named profile. A dental office lists Type 2 at reception and Type 3 in sterilization. A warehouse lists Type 1 at the roll gate and Type 2 at will call. Specific beats generic in an interview.
Why Type 2 and Type 3 carry most risk
Type 2 lives where public contact lives. Aisles, dining rooms, waiting areas, lobbies. Close contact plus cash plus waiting raises odds for escalation.
Type 3 lives where people work together. Kitchen lines, stockrooms, opens and closes with two people. Cal/OSHA asks employees directly whether they know how to report and whether they fear retaliation under §6401.9(c)(2)(D). If Type 3 was never assessed, they cannot answer.
Three patterns we see:
- Retail: Type 2 at the register during returns. Type 3 in the stockroom when a new hire is corrected on the floor.
- Clinic: Type 2 at check in when patients wait. Type 3 between shifts when charts are handed off.
- Warehouse: Type 1 at the yard gate after hours. Type 2 at the will call window. Type 3 on the pack line when quotas shift.
If your plan lists only robbery, you have described Type 1 and left the other two blank. That blank is what inspectors flag.
Check your exposure in 60 seconds
You do not need a guess. Answer a few facts about public access, staffing, and hours to see your mix.
Hazard Exposure Check
Four questions map your Type 1 to 4 profile per worksite.
Run the checkInteractive tool at /hazard-exposure. No sign up required.
The check mirrors wizard questions 8 to 15. It shows where your assessment should focus.
How to show the report to employees
§6401.9 requires that you tell employees about hazards and corrections, and that you involve them in building the plan under §6401.9(c)(2)(B). Posting a PDF in the break room once does not meet that.
Subilu handles the share step without extra work. The WVPP wizard builds the Type 1 to 4 profile per site from your answers. The hazard task manager records each correction with a timestamp. Mobile training delivers the same types to staff in five minutes with a live Q and A, and saves completion records. All three export as separate files, DOCX or PDF for the plan, CSV or PDF for the log and roster, so you can give employees the employee-safe log without names.
Mark which types occur at each location. If you cannot mark two, your assessment is not done.
Not legal advice. Source: Labor Code §6401.9(c)(2)(B), (d) and DIR WVPP guidance. Pair with Your WVPP in 21 Sections.