| 12 | 13 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1 |
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| 13 | 14 | | AN ACT AMENDING WORKPLACE VIOLENCE PREVENTION LAWS TO COVER MASS 2 |
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| 14 | 15 | | PICKETING. 3 |
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| 15 | 16 | | The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts: 4 |
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| 16 | 17 | | SECTION 1. Article 23 of Chapter 95 of the General Statutes reads as rewritten: 5 |
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| 17 | 18 | | "Article 23. 6 |
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| 18 | 19 | | "Workplace Violence Prevention. 7 |
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| 19 | 20 | | "§ 95-260. Definitions. 8 |
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| 20 | 21 | | The following definitions apply in this Article: 9 |
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| 21 | 22 | | (1) Civil no-contact order. – An order granted under this Article, which includes 10 |
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| 22 | 23 | | a remedy authorized by G.S. 95-264. 11 |
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| 23 | 24 | | (2) Employer. – Any person or entity that employs one or more employees. 12 |
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| 24 | 25 | | Employer also includes the State of North Carolina and its political 13 |
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| 25 | 26 | | subdivisions. 14 |
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| 26 | 27 | | (2a) Mass picketing. – Picketing, with or without signs, that constitutes an obstacle 15 |
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| 27 | 28 | | to the ingress and egress to and from the premises being picketed or any other 16 |
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| 28 | 29 | | premises, or upon the public roads, streets, highways, or other ways of travel 17 |
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| 29 | 30 | | or conveyance, either by obstructing by their persons or by placing of vehicles 18 |
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| 30 | 31 | | or other physical obstructions. 19 |
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| 31 | 32 | | (2b) Place of employment. – A building or conveyance of any kind, whether the 20 |
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| 32 | 33 | | building or conveyance is temporary or permanent, mobile or immobile. 21 |
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| 33 | 34 | | (3) Unlawful conduct. – Unlawful conduct means the commission of one or more 22 |
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| 34 | 35 | | of the following acts upon an employer or employee, but does not include acts 23 |
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| 35 | 36 | | of self-defense or defense of others: 24 |
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| 36 | 37 | | a. Attempting to cause bodily injury or intentionally causing bodily 25 |
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| 37 | 38 | | injury. 26 |
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| 38 | 39 | | b. Willfully, and on more than one occasion, following, being in the 27 |
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| 39 | 40 | | presence of, or otherwise harassing, as defined in G.S. 14-277.3A, 28 |
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| 40 | 41 | | without legal purpose and with the intent to place the employee or 29 |
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| 41 | 42 | | employer in reasonable fear for the employee's or employer's safety. 30 |
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| 42 | 43 | | c. Willfully threatening, orally, in writing, or by any other means, to 31 |
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| 43 | 44 | | physically injure the employee or employer in a manner and under 32 |
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| 44 | 45 | | circumstances that would cause a reasonable person to believe that the 33 |
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| 45 | 46 | | threat is likely to be carried out and that actually causes the employee 34 |
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| 48 | 53 | | d. Hindering or preventing, by mass picketing, unlawful threats, or force, 1 |
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| 49 | 54 | | the pursuit of any lawful work or employment. 2 |
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| 50 | 55 | | e. Obstructing or interfering with the entrance to or egress from any place 3 |
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| 51 | 56 | | of employment by mass picketing. 4 |
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| 52 | 57 | | f. Obstructing or interfering with free and uninterrupted use of public 5 |
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| 53 | 58 | | roads, streets, highways, railways, airports, or other ways of travel or 6 |
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| 54 | 59 | | conveyance by mass picketing. 7 |
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| 55 | 60 | | "§ 95-261. Civil no-contact orders; persons protected. 8 |
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| 56 | 61 | | An action for a civil no-contact order may be filed as a civil action in district court by an 9 |
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| 57 | 62 | | employer on behalf of an employee or by an employer who has suffered unlawful conduct from 10 |
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| 58 | 63 | | any individual or individuals that can reasonably be construed to be carried out, or to have been 11 |
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| 59 | 64 | | carried out, at the employee's workplace. place of employment. The employee or employer that 12 |
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| 60 | 65 | | is the subject of unlawful conduct shall be consulted prior to seeking an injunction under this 13 |
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| 61 | 66 | | Article in order to determine whether any safety concerns exist in relation to the employee's or 14 |
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| 62 | 67 | | employer's participation in the process. Employees or employers who are targets of unlawful 15 |
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| 63 | 68 | | conduct who are unwilling to participate in the process under this Article shall not face 16 |
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| 64 | 69 | | disciplinary action based on their level of participation or cooperation. 17 |
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| 65 | 70 | | "§ 95-262. Commencement of action; venue. 18 |
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| 66 | 71 | | (a) An action for a civil no-contact order is commenced by filing a verified complaint for 19 |
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| 67 | 72 | | a civil no-contact order in any civil district court the county where the unlawful conduct took 20 |
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| 68 | 73 | | place or by filing a motion in any existing civil action. 21 |
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| 69 | 74 | | (b) A complaint or motion for a civil no-contact order shall be filed in the county where 22 |
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| 70 | 75 | | the unlawful conduct took place. 23 |
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| 71 | 76 | | … 24 |
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| 72 | 77 | | "§ 95-264. Civil no-contact order; remedy. 25 |
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| 73 | 78 | | (a) Upon a finding that the employee or employer has suffered unlawful conduct 26 |
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| 74 | 79 | | committed by the respondent, the court may issue a temporary or permanent civil no-contact 27 |
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| 75 | 80 | | order. In determining whether or not to issue a civil no-contact order, the court shall not require 28 |
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| 76 | 81 | | physical injury to the employee or employer or injury to the employer's property. 29 |
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| 77 | 82 | | (b) The court may grant one or more of the following forms of relief in its orders under 30 |
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| 78 | 83 | | this Article: 31 |
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| 79 | 84 | | (1) Order the respondent not to visit, assault, molest, or otherwise interfere with 32 |
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| 80 | 85 | | the employer or the employer's employee at the employer's workplace, or 33 |
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| 81 | 86 | | otherwise interfere with the employer's operations. 34 |
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| 82 | 87 | | (2) Order the respondent to cease stalking the employer or the employer's 35 |
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| 83 | 88 | | employee at the employer's workplace. 36 |
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| 84 | 89 | | (3) Order the respondent to cease harassment of the employer or the employer's 37 |
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| 85 | 90 | | employee at the employer's workplace. 38 |
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| 86 | 91 | | (4) Order the respondent not to abuse or injure the employer, including the 39 |
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| 87 | 92 | | employer's property, or the employer's employee at the employer's workplace. 40 |
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| 88 | 93 | | (5) Order the respondent not to contact by telephone, written communication, or 41 |
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| 89 | 94 | | electronic means the employer or the employer's employee at the employer's 42 |
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| 90 | 95 | | workplace. 43 |
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| 91 | 96 | | (6) Order other relief deemed necessary and appropriate by the court. 44 |
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| 92 | 97 | | (c) A civil no-contact order shall include the following notice, printed in conspicuous 45 |
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| 93 | 98 | | type: "A knowing violation of a civil no-contact order shall be punishable as contempt of court 46 |
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| 94 | 99 | | which may result in a fine or imprisonment." 47 |
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| 95 | 100 | | … 48 |
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| 96 | 101 | | "§ 95-266. Permanent civil no-contact order. 49 |
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| 97 | 102 | | Upon a finding that the employer or employee has suffered unlawful conduct committed by 50 |
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| 98 | 103 | | the respondent, a permanent civil no-contact order may issue if the court additionally finds that 51 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 |
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| 100 | 105 | | process was properly served on the respondent, the respondent has answered the complaint and 1 |
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| 101 | 106 | | notice of hearing was given, or the respondent is in default. No permanent civil no-contact order 2 |
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| 102 | 107 | | shall be issued without notice to the respondent. 3 |
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| 103 | 108 | | … 4 |
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| 104 | 109 | | "§ 95-271. Scope of Article; other remedies available.available; severability. 5 |
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| 105 | 110 | | (a) This Article does not expand, diminish, alter, or modify any duty of any employer to 6 |
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| 106 | 111 | | provide a safe workplace for employees and other persons. This Article does not limit the ability 7 |
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| 107 | 112 | | of an employer, employee, or victim to pursue any other civil or criminal remedy provided by 8 |
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| 108 | 113 | | law. This Article does not apply in circumstances where an employee or representative of 9 |
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| 109 | 114 | | employees is engaged in union organizing, union activity, a labor dispute, or any activity or action 10 |
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| 110 | 115 | | protected by the National Labor Relations Act, 29 U.S.C. § 151, et seq. Nothing in this Article is 11 |
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| 111 | 116 | | intended to change the National Labor Relations Act's preemptive regulation of legally protected 12 |
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| 112 | 117 | | activities, nor to change the right of the State and its courts to regulate activities not protected by 13 |
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| 113 | 118 | | the National Labor Relations Act. 14 |
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| 114 | 119 | | (b) Nothing in this Article is intended, or shall be construed, to conflict with, restrict, 15 |
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| 115 | 120 | | limit, or infringe upon rights protected by the North Carolina or United States Constitution. 16 |
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| 116 | 121 | | (c) If any provision of this Article is held by a court of competent jurisdiction to be 17 |
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| 117 | 122 | | invalid, void, or unenforceable, in whole or in part, the decision shall not affect the validity, 18 |
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| 118 | 123 | | enforceability, or applicability of the remaining provisions of this Article, which shall remain in 19 |
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| 119 | 124 | | full force and effect as if the provision held invalid, void, or unenforceable had not been 20 |
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| 120 | 125 | | included." 21 |
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| 121 | 126 | | SECTION 2. This act is effective when it becomes law and applies to acts or 22 |
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| 122 | 127 | | omissions occurring on or after that date. 23 |
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