File No. 548

House of Representatives, April 18, 2011

The Committee on Government Administration and Elections reported through REP. MORIN of the 28th Dist., Chairperson of the Committee on the part of the House, that the substitute bill ought to pass.

AN ACT CONCERNING STATE EMPLOYEES AND VIOLENCE AND BULLYING IN THE WORKPLACE.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:

Section 1. Section 4a-2a of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective from passage):

(a) As used in this section:

(1) "Abusive conduct" means conduct or a single act of a state employee in the workplace that is performed with malice and is unrelated to the state's legitimate interest that a reasonable person would find hostile or offensive considering the severity, nature and frequency of the conduct or the severity and egregiousness of the single act. Abusive conduct includes, but is not limited to, (A) repeated infliction of verbal abuse such as the use of derogatory remarks, insults and epithets; (B) verbal or physical conduct that a reasonable person would find threatening, intimidating or humiliating; or (C) sabotaging or undermining a person's work performance; and

(2) "State employee" means any employee in the executive, legislative or judicial branch of state government, but does not include contractors, subcontractors or vendors of the state.

(b) For the fiscal year ending June 30, 1999, and each fiscal year thereafter, the Commissioner of Administrative Services, in consultation with the Commissioner of Mental Health and Addiction Services and the Commissioner of Public Safety, shall, within the limits of available appropriations, provide an appropriate program of workplace stress and violence awareness, prevention and preparedness for state employees.

(c) On or before January 1, 2012, and annually thereafter, the Commissioner of Administrative Services shall submit a report, in accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a, to the Governor and the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to labor summarizing the number of complaints of workplace violence or abusive conduct involving state employees and the outcomes of such complaints for the preceding year. Such report shall include recommendations for administrative or legislative action related to such complaints.

Sec. 2. (Effective from passage) On or before January 1, 2012, the Commissioner of Administrative Services, or the commissioner's designee, in consultation with the Commissioners of Public Safety, Public Works and Mental Health and Addiction Services, or their designees, shall, within existing budgetary resources, establish policies and procedures for preventing, reporting, evaluating and investigating complaints of abusive conduct occurring in the workplace between state employees.

The following Fiscal Impact Statement and Bill Analysis are prepared for the benefit of the members of the General Assembly, solely for purposes of information, summarization and explanation and do not represent the intent of the General Assembly or either chamber thereof for any purpose. In general, fiscal impacts are based upon a variety of informational sources, including the analyst's professional knowledge. Whenever applicable, agency data is consulted as part of the analysis, however final products do not necessarily reflect an assessment from any specific department.

OFA Fiscal Note

State Impact: None

Municipal Impact: None

Explanation

The bill establishes reporting requirements on state employee workplace violence complaints and outcomes and does not result in a fiscal impact to the Department of Administrative Services.

The Out Years: None

OLR Bill Analysis

sHB 5464

AN ACT CONCERNING STATE EMPLOYEES AND VIOLENCE AND BULLYING IN THE WORKPLACE.

SUMMARY:

This bill requires the administrative services commissioner to report annually, beginning January 1, 2012, on the number of state employee workplace violence and “abusive conduct” complaints and complaint outcomes. The bill defines a state employee as any employee in the executive, legislative, or judicial branch, but not contractors, subcontractors, or vendors.

The report must go to the governor and Labor Committee and include recommendations for administrative or legislative action related to the complaints.

It also requires the commissioner, or his designee, in consultation with the public safety, public works, and mental health and addiction services commissioners, or their designees, to establish policies and procedures for preventing, reporting, evaluating, and investigating complaints of abusive conduct occurring in the workplace between state employees (see BACKGROUND). This must be done within existing budgetary resources.

The bill defines abusive conduct in the workplace.

EFFECTIVE DATE: Upon passage

ABUSIVE CONDUCT

The bill defines abusive conduct as a state employee's conduct or single act in the workplace that is performed with malice and is unrelated to the state's legitimate interest, that a reasonable person would find hostile or offensive considering the severity, nature, and frequency of the conduct or the severity and egregiousness of the single act. Abusive conduct includes (1) repeated infliction of verbal abuse such as the use of derogatory remarks, insults, and epithets; (2) verbal or physical conduct that a reasonable person would find threatening, intimidating, or humiliating; or (3) sabotaging or undermining a person's work performance.

BACKGROUND

Statewide Security Management Council and Violence in the Workplace Policy and Procedures Manual

Abusive conduct, along with other behaviors, is addressed by the Statewide Security Management Council, which by law must establish workplace safety standards and conduct security audits of state facilities (CGS § 4b-136). After Governor Rowland issued Executive Order No. 16 (1999), which addressed workplace violence, harassment, and intimidating behavior, the council issued a detailed “Violence in the Workplace Policy and Procedures Manual.” The manual provides details for (1) preventive actions state agencies must take; (2) what constitutes violence or other inappropriate behavior; and (3) what steps must be taken to address workplace incidents of violence, threats, or harassment.

All executive branch agencies were required to adopt the manual. The Department of Administrative Services, which has broad authority in state employee personnel matters, incorporated the manual into its training for human resources personnel. The manual outlines the responsibilities of each agency's human resources office including responding to and investigating all complaints of workplace violence, threats, or potential violence.

Related Bill

SHB 5174 (File 31) requires the administrative services commissioner to develop an employee training program on workplace violence awareness, prevention, and preparedness. It requires all full-time state employees to attend this training.

COMMITTEE ACTION

Labor and Public Employees Committee

Joint Favorable Substitute Change of Reference

Government Administration and Elections Committee

Joint Favorable