Why True Compliance with California's SB 553 Requires CAPS: An Invitation to Our Free Presentation

Introduction: Why should you register for our free CAPS Presentation? The answer lies in addressing your most pressing concerns. In your position working for a company in California, what keeps you up at night? Is it simply surviving the next financial quarter, or is it issues like liability and risk? Or perhaps it’s the broader context of living in an increasingly intense, vitriolic, and thus dangerous world?

The Growing Intensity of Your World: Turn on the news and observe the crime and aggression that now permeates our society. Regardless of your political affiliation, the vitriolic language used to characterize opponents has become dangerously inflammatory. Saturday evening there was an attempt to assassinate the former President, raising questions about how even the most elite protection forces in the world can miss threats when individuals in the crowd reported to police that there was a man with a rifle on a roof before the first round was discharged! Nothing happened until after the fact. The results: think about this: had the former President not turned his head at just the right time and in just the right way, the outcome would not have been an attempted assassination, but an assassination. Is this acceptable to you? It isn’t for me! Why does this keep happening?

Reactive vs. Proactive Approaches: Our current societal, security, and human resources systems are designed to respond to and punish offenders. Think about this: Active Shooter Response addresses an active shooter already murdering your employees, and Conflict Resolution deals with existing conflicts; and as we have observed across our nation, on college campuses we have repeatedly seen conflict turn into violence. The realization here is, if you want to prevent violence, you must get out in front of conflict, which Conflict Resolution (De-escalation) do not achieve.

Further programs targeting sexual harassment, abuse, bullying, and discrimination react to these aggressive incidents after they have occurred, and therefore, they do not satisfy the CA Senate Bill 553 Workplace Violence “Prevention” Standard.

Understanding SB 553: California's SB 553 mandates that employers implement effective Workplace Violence “Prevention” Program (WVPP). These plans must identify potential threats and put measures in place to prevent incidents before they occur. Traditional approaches described above, which rely on punitive measures and after-the-fact responses, fall short of these “prevention” standards. SB 553 calls for a proactive, preventive approach that protects employees and fosters a safe working environment. I know, you have made a significant investment of your time and money, and your legal counsel has told you that you are in compliance with SB 553; but are you?

The Legal Compliance Gap: Most employers have followed their legal teams' advice and invested heavily in preparing for SB 553 compliance. However, according to the fifth largest law firm in the U.S., they report that CA OSHA has stated that even strict adherence to their guidelines will not guarantee full compliance. This “violence prevention” gap in their SB 553 standard leaves organizations vulnerable, despite their best efforts and substantial financial investments.

The CAPS Difference: CAPS is a game-changer in workplace violence “prevention”. Unlike traditional methods, CAPS focuses on identifying and mitigating the precursors to aggressive incidents before they escalate into a violent incident. Our approach is rehabilitative, not punitive, offering individuals a chance to correct their behavior without the fear of severe consequences.

1. Comprehensive Data Collection: CAPS uses advanced data collection methods that do not rely on mental health assessments or demographic factors such as culture, gender, education, age, sexual orientation, or religion. This ensures full compliance with privacy regulations while providing accurate tracking of aggressive behavior required under SB 553.
2. Scientific Reliability: CAPS scientifically identifies the precursors to incidents violence, sexual harassment, abuse, bullying, and discrimination. Our method is Evidence-Based and proven through rigorous application, making it a reliable tool for workplace violence “prevention”.
3. Intellectual Property and Innovation: Over the past three decades, we have developed and trademarked our unique language and methodology for Aggression Management?. This intellectual property is robust and protected, ensuring our approach remains cutting-edge and legally sound. No other company nor vendor has the violence “prevention” capabilities of our Critical Aggression Prevention System (CAPS).
4. We don’t just diffuse, we convince: Because we are able to identify precursors to an intent to do harm to another, and at what stage, or level of intent this person is, we can convince this person away from their intended aggressive path to a more constructive assertive path where they will not suffer the consequences of their aggressive intentions. This is a rehabilitative path, not a punitive one.

Proven Success and Future Potential: We have already seen significant success with CAPS in various settings. For instance, Eastern Kentucky University has effectively used CAPS to track and assist students displaying concerning behavior, resulting in a safer campus environment. Additionally, our first major client, the largest hospital system in New York, is currently implementing CAPS across its network, showcasing our system's scalability and effectiveness.

Call to Action: I want to protect you and your company from presumed SB 553 compliance, only to learn once you have had an incident—whether it be violence, or a broader definition of violence, which includes sexual harassment, abuse, bullying, or discrimination—that you have not met SB 553's Standard of Workplace Violence Prevention and thus are presumed to be liable and must now prove your innocence! As we continue to evolve and innovate, we invite you to join us in creating safer workplaces. Whether you are an employer looking to comply with SB 553 or an organization committed to “preventing” workplace violence, CAPS offers a proven, effective solution.

Register with us to learn more about how CAPS can help your organization meet the highest standards of workplace violence prevention. Together, we can create a safer, more supportive work environment for everyone.

Conclusion: The need for effective workplace violence prevention has never been greater, and California's SB 553 sets the benchmark for what is required. CAPS stands out as the only program that not only meets but exceeds these stringent requirements. Despite the significant investments many employers have made based on legal advice, true compliance remains elusive without CAPS. Let’s work together to protect our employees and foster a culture of safety and respect in the workplace.