Violence in the Workplace Law Summaries

Violence in the Workplace Law Summaries

Utah, Violence in the Workplace Law Summaries

Utah has laws/executive orders relating to violence against women in the workplace; stalking, including harassment by electronic communication; carrying concealed weapons; and protection of activities (specifically firearmr) in private vehicles.

DEFINITIONS

“Course of conduct” means two or more acts directed at or toward a specific person, including (Utah CodeAnn, Sec. 76-5-106.5, as amended by Ch. 356 (H. 493), L. 2008):

1. acts in which the actor follows, monitors, observes, photographs, surveils, threatens, or communicates to or about a person, or interferes with a person's property: (a) directly, indirectly, or through any third party; and (b) by any action, method, device, or means; or

2. when the actor engages in any of the following acts or causes someone else to engage in any of these acts: (a) approaches or confronts a person; (b) appears at the person's workplace or contacts the person's employer or coworkers; (c) appears at a person's residence or contacts a person's neighbors, or enters property owned, leased, or occupied by a person; (d) sends material by any means to the person or for the purpose of obtaining or disseminating information about or communicating with the person to a member of the person's family or household, employer, coworker, friend, or associate of the person; (e) places an object or delivers an object to property owned, leased, or occupied by a person, or to the person's place of employment with the intent that the object be delivered to the person; or (f) uses a computer, the Internet, text messaging, or any other electronic means to commit an act that is a part of the course of conduct.

For purposes of Utah’s Protection of Activities in Private Vehicles law, person means an individual, property owner, landlord, tenant, employer, business entity, or other legal entity (Sec. 34-45-102, as added by S. 78, L. 2009, effective May 12, 2009). However, school premises; local and state government entities; religious organizations (including those acting as employers); owner- or tenant-occupied single-family detached residences are exempt from the law; Also, other conditional exemptions apply to persons subject to federal law that specifically forbids the presence of a firearm from property designated for motor vehicle parking, or a person who is subject to Section 550 of the United States Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act of 2007, Pub. L. No. 109-295 or its regulations (Sec. 34-45-107, as added by S. 78, L. 2009, effective May 12, 2009).

WHAT THE EMPLOYER MUST DO

Stalking laws.- A person is guilty of stalking who intentionally or knowingly engages in a course of conduct directed at a specific person and knows or should know that the course of conduct would cause a reasonable person: (a) to fear for the person's own safety or the safety of a third person; or (b) to suffer other emotional distress (Utah CodeAnn, Sec. 76-5-106.5, as amended by Ch. 356 (H. 493), L. 2008).

A person is guilty of stalking who intentionally or knowingly violates: (a) a stalking injunction issued pursuant to Title 77, Ch. 3a; or (b) a permanent criminal stalking injunction issued pursuant to this section (Utah CodeAnn, Sec. 76-5-106.5, as amended by Ch. 356 (H. 493), L. 2008).

A permanent criminal stalking injunction may grant the following relief (Utah CodeAnn, Sec. 76-5-106.5, as amended by Ch. 356 (H. 493), L. 2008):

1. an order (a) restraining the defendant from entering the residence, property, school, or place of employment of the victim; and (b) requiring the defendant to stay away from the victim and members of the victim's immediate family or household and to stay away from any specified place that is named in the order and is frequented regularly by the victim; and

2. an order restraining the defendant from making contact with or regarding the victim, including an order forbidding the defendant from personally or through an agent initiating any communication likely to cause annoyance or alarm to the victim, including personal, written, or telephone contact with or regarding the victim, with the victim's employers, employees, coworkers, friends, associates, or others with whom communication would be likely to cause annoyance or alarm to the victim.

Electronic communication harassment.- A person is guilty of electronic communication harassment and subject to prosecution in the jurisdiction where the communication originated or was received if with intent to annoy, alarm, intimidate, offend, abuse, threaten, harass, frighten, or disrupt the electronic communications of another, the person (Utah CodeAnn, Sec. 76-9-201(2), as amended by H. 221, L. 2005, effective May 2, 2005):

1. makes repeated contact by means of electronic communications, whether or not a conversation ensues; or after the recipient has requested or informed the person not to contact the recipient, and the person repeatedly or continuously (a) contacts the electronic communication device of the recipient; or (b) causes and electronic communication device of the recipient to ring or to receive other notification of attempted contact by means of electronic communication;

2. makes contact by means of electronic communication and insults, taunts, or challenges the recipient of the communication or any person at the receiving location in a manner likely to provoke a violent or disorderly response;

3. makes contact by means of electronic communication and threatens to inflict injury, physical harm, or damage to any person or the property or any person; or

4. causes disruption, jamming, or overload of an electronic communication system through excessive message traffic or other means utilizing an electronic communication device.

Injunctions.- If a court determines that there is reason to believe that an offense of stalking has occurred, an ex parte civil stalking injunction may be issued by the court that includes any of the following (Utah CodeAnn, Sec. 77-3a-101, as added by Ch. 276 (H. 25), L. 2001):

1. respondent may be restrained from coming near the place of employment of the other party or specifically designated locations or persons;

2. respondent may be restrained from contacting the other party, including personal, written or telephone contact with the other party, the other party's employers, employees, fellow workers or others with whom communication would be likely to cause annoyance or alarm to the other party.

Violence Against Women in the Workplace (Executive Order 2005-06).- The governor has signed an executive order prohibiting violence against women in each workplace in which state employees and employees of public and higher education are required to conduct business. The director of each department in state government must establish a policy prohibiting violence against women in the workplace. The policy shall contain the following (1) a statement of zero tolerance for domestic and sexual violence in the workplace; (2) carefully designed procedures to protect the rights and address the needs of employees who are victims of domestic and sexual violence to include: establishment of safety procedures; protection of privacy and confidentiality; access to information for personal counseling or to the department employee assistance program where available; adjustments in work schedule and use of leave consistent with Department of Human Resource Management rules; (3) a prohibition on the use of state facilities, resources, or time to facilitate and perpetuate violence against women; (4) a provision for the discipline of employees who violate this policy consistent with Department of Human Resource Management rules; (5) access to information for personal counseling or to the department employee assistance program where available for employees who are perpetrators and who voluntarily seek assistance; (6) training for managers and supervisors on prevention and appropriate response to violence against women which impacts or disrupts the workplace; (7) any other provision that appears to the department director to materially further the purposes of the executive order (Executive Order 2005-06, signed and effective April 28, 2005).

Carrying concealed weapons.- In Utah, carrying a concealed dangerous weapon, other than a firearm, for immediate use that is not securely encased is unlawful unless the action takes place in the holder's residence, property or a business under the holder's control. Carrying a concealed firearm without a permit is unlawful (Utah CodeAnn, Sec. 76-10-504, as amended by S. 5, L. 2005).

Protection of Activities in Private Vehicles law. - Except as provided below, a person (including any employer) may not establish, maintain, or enforce any policy or rule that has the effect of prohibiting any individual from transporting or storing a firearm in a motor vehicle on any property designated for motor vehicle parking, if: (i) the individual is legally permitted to transport, possess, purchase, receive, transfer, or store the firearm; (ii) the firearm is locked securely in the motor vehicle or in a locked container attached to the motor vehicle while the motor vehicle is not occupied; and (iii) the firearm is not in plain view from the outside of the motor vehicle (Sec. 34-45-103(1), as added by S. 78, L. 2009, effective May 12, 2009).

A person may establish, maintain, or enforce a policy or rule that has the effect of placing limitations on or prohibiting an individual from transporting or storing a firearm in a motor vehicle on property the person has designated for motor vehicle parking if, within a reasonable distance, there is (i) alternative parking for individuals who desire to transport, possess, receive, transfer, or store a firearm in the individual's motor vehicle at no additional cost to the individual; or (ii) a secured and monitored storage location where the individual may securely store a firearm before proceeding with the vehicle into the secured parking area; or if the person comes under one of the exemptions below under federal law in Subsection 34-45-107 (5) (Sec. 34-45-103(2), as added by S. 78, L. 2009, effective May 12, 2009).

A person that owns or controls a parking area that is subject to this law and that complies with it is not liable in any civil action for any occurrence resulting from, connected with, or incidental to the use of a firearm, by any person, unless the use of the firearm involves a criminal act by the person who owns or controls the parking area (Sec. 34-45-104, as added by S. 78, L. 2009, effective May 12, 2009).

Enforcement. An individual who is injured, physically or otherwise, as a result of any policy or rule prohibited by this act may bring a civil action against any person that violates the act, and may request declaratory relief; temporary or permanent injunctive relief to prevent the threatened or continued violation; recovery for actual damages; and punitive damages, if serious bodily injury or death occurs as a result of the violation or the person who violates the act has previously been notified by the attorney general that a policy or rule violates the act (Sec. 34-45-105, as added by S. 78, L. 2009, effective May 12, 2009).