PHRca CA Health and Safety 4 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Under California Labor Code Section 6311, an employee who refuses to perform work due to an imminent safety hazard is protected from:
- Wage deductions during the refusal period
- Disciplinary action or discharge (Correct answer)
- Mandatory reassignment to a different department
- Mandatory medical examination
Correct answer: Disciplinary action or discharge
Labor Code Section 6311 protects employees from discharge or discrimination for refusing to perform work that would violate a safety order and create a real and apparent hazard.
Question 2: An HR manager at a California construction company must ensure compliance with which Cal/OSHA regulation regarding fall protection?
- CCR Title 8, Section 1670 (Personal Fall Arrest Systems)
- CCR Title 8, Section 3210 (Fall Protection — General Industry)
- CCR Title 8, Section 1670 through 1677 (Construction Safety Orders) (Correct answer)
- Federal OSHA 29 CFR 1926 Subpart M
Correct answer: CCR Title 8, Section 1670 through 1677 (Construction Safety Orders)
Construction fall protection in California is governed by CCR Title 8 Construction Safety Orders (Sections 1670–1677), not the federal subpart, since California operates its own state plan.
Question 3: How often must a California employer review and update its Injury and Illness Prevention Program (IIPP)?
- Annually, regardless of changes
- Whenever a deficiency is identified or a workplace change occurs (Correct answer)
- Every three years or after a serious injury
- Only when required by a Cal/OSHA inspection
Correct answer: Whenever a deficiency is identified or a workplace change occurs
The IIPP must be reviewed and revised whenever deficiencies are identified or when changes in the workplace create new hazards.
Question 4: California's Cal/OSHA standard for personal protective equipment (PPE) places the cost of required PPE on the:
- Employee, who selects their own gear
- Employer, who must provide it at no cost to the employee (Correct answer)
- Joint labor-management safety committee
- State's OSHA fund
Correct answer: Employer, who must provide it at no cost to the employee
California employers are required to provide and pay for PPE that is required to protect employees from workplace hazards, with limited exceptions.
Question 5: Which Cal/OSHA standard specifically requires employers to conduct a job hazard analysis (JHA) before employees perform high-hazard tasks?
- CCR Title 8, Section 3203 (IIPP)
- CCR Title 8, Section 5189 (PSM)
- CCR Title 8, Section 3314 (Lockout/Tagout)
- No single standard; JHAs are a best practice recommended but not mandated universally (Correct answer)
Correct answer: No single standard; JHAs are a best practice recommended but not mandated universally
While JHAs are a best practice and required in some specific standards (e.g., PSM, certain confined space work), no single universal Cal/OSHA standard mandates JHAs for all high-hazard tasks.
Question 6: Under California Labor Code Section 6409.1, an employer must file a Cal/OSHA 301 incident report within how many days of a recordable injury?
- 7 days (Correct answer)
- 14 days
- 30 days
- 45 days
Correct answer: 7 days
Employers must complete and retain a Cal/OSHA 301 (or equivalent) incident report within seven calendar days of learning of a recordable work-related injury or illness.
Question 7: A California employer receives a Cal/OSHA citation for a serious violation. What is the maximum civil penalty per serious violation under current law?
- $7,000
- $15,625 (Correct answer)
- $25,000
- $70,000
Correct answer: $15,625
As of 2024, the maximum penalty for a Cal/OSHA serious violation is $15,625 per violation, adjusted periodically for inflation.
PHRca CA Health and Safety 4
Under California Labor Code Section 6311, an employee who refuses to perform work due to an imminent safety hazard is protected from: