A bill to increase safety requirements on the placement, training, and oversight of temporary workers is scheduled for a hearing this week.
HB 1206, sponsored by Rep. Liz Berry (D–Seattle), adds several safety-related obligations for staffing agencies and employers of temporary workers placed
by staffing agencies. Before a staffing agency can place a temporary worker at a worksite, the staffing agency must:
- Inquire about and assess a worksite employer’s safety and health practices and workplace hazards;
- Urge the worksite employer to correct or mitigate hazards, and failing that remove temp workers from worksite;
- Train the worker on general awareness safety training for recognized industry hazards;
- Transmit the worker’s training records to the worksite employer;
- Establish a safety hazard hotline for temporary workers; and
- Inform temporary workers of how to report safety hazards.
The bill includes requirements for employers who hire temporary workers. It requires worksite employers to document and inform the staffing agency about anticipated workplace hazards, review the agency’s safety training for adequacy, provide additional
safety training if necessary, and transmit any additional training records back to the staffing agency. Employers are also required to allow the staffing agency to conduct worksite visits.
Additionally, if an employer changes the temporary worker’s job location or duties, it must inform both the worker and staffing agency, review for any new hazards, and offer additional safety training if necessary. Either the staffing agency or
the temporary worker can refuse the change if no new hazard review is conducted or no additional safety training offered.
Many cities employ temporary workers through a staffing agency or hire temporary workers for seasonal needs. HB 1206 would make cities responsible for assessing hazards in their worksites and ultimately responsible for the adequacy of a temporary worker’s
safety training before they could start work.
SB 5218, the Senate companion bill, has also been introduced. It has been referred to the Senate Labor, Commerce, & Tribal Affairs Committee but has yet to be scheduled for a hearing.
Dates to remember
HB 1206 is schedule for a public hearing in the House Labor & Workplace Standards Committee on Tuesday, January 26, at 10 am.