California runs its own State Plan, Cal/OSHA, and its rules go further than federal OSHA in several places. Every employer needs a written Injury and Illness Prevention Program with training records, most need a workplace violence prevention plan with annual training, and outdoor and indoor heat rules have their own training. Here is what the official texts say.
Who Cal/OSHA covers
According to OSHA's State Plan page, Cal/OSHA covers private-sector workplaces in California and state and local government employers, with some exceptions such as maritime work and military bases. Federal employers, including the Postal Service, stay with federal OSHA.
IIPP: the written program and its training records
Title 8 §3203 requires every employer to establish, implement and maintain a written Injury and Illness Prevention Program. Training is required when the program is first established, for all new employees, for employees given a new job assignment, whenever new substances, processes or equipment bring a new hazard, and for supervisors on the hazards their crews face. Records of training list the employee's name or other identifier, the training dates, the type of training and the provider, and are kept for at least one year. Employers with fewer than 10 employees may instruct orally and keep a log of instructions.
Workplace violence prevention (SB 553)
Since July 1, 2024, Labor Code §6401.9 requires most employers to have a written workplace violence prevention plan, keep a violent incident log, and train employees when the plan is first established and annually after that, plus extra training when a new hazard is found or the plan changes. Training records are kept for at least one year; hazard records, the incident log and investigations for at least five years. Exempt are, among others, health care facilities under §3342, teleworkers at a place of their choice, and workplaces with fewer than 10 employees present that are not open to the public. The law asks the Standards Board to adopt a general industry standard by December 31, 2026; as of this page's update the proposed standard was still in advisory meetings.
Heat illness, outdoors and indoors
- Outdoors (§3395): shade when the temperature exceeds 80°F, high-heat procedures at 95°F in listed industries such as construction and agriculture, a written plan in English and in the language most employees understand, and training for every employee before work with a risk of heat illness, and for supervisors before they supervise.
- Indoors (§3396, in force since July 23, 2024): work areas at 82°F or more, with control measures from 87°F, and the same kind of training.
Forklifts, and where a quiz fits
§3668 has operator training requirements equivalent to federal 29 CFR 1910.178(l): formal instruction, practical training and an evaluation in the workplace at least once every three years, with a certification naming the trainer and the evaluator (see our forklift practice test).
A short quiz on the IIPP, heat or the violence prevention plan, played live from phones at the end of a session, shows what people actually understood, not only who signed the sheet. When you need evidence, run the same quiz in Test mode (Trainer plan): each worker answers under their own name, you set the pass mark, and you download a PDF learning assessment record with the date, the topic, the trainer, each person's answers and result, and a signature column. It sits next to the training records the state asks for; it does not replace the training, and Quizhat never certifies anyone. Quizhat is an independent tool, not affiliated with or endorsed by OSHA.
State rules change: read the current text on the state's site, or ask the state agency, before you rely on this summary. Cal/OSHA Consultation offers free help: dir.ca.gov/dosh/consultation.