Throughout October 2025, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed multiple employment-related Bills into law. These new measures address a wide range of workplace-related matters, including regulations aimed at the use of artificial intelligence, updates on paid leave, and amendments to mediation procedures. While some of these Bills will be subject to legal challenges that delay or block their application, many took effect immediately or will become effective on January 1, 2026. Accordingly, California employers are encouraged to begin updating policies, training programs, and internal templates to ensure compliance with these requirements.
- AB 692 prohibits contractual provisions purporting to require a departing employee to repay any debt to the employer.
AB 692, signed into law on October 13, 2025, makes it unlawful for California employers to include specified provisions in any employment contract entered into on or after January 1, 2026. Specifically, AB 692 prohibits any term that would require the worker to pay an employer, training provider, or debt collector for a debt if the worker’s employment or work relationship terminates. Exceptions exist for certain agreements, including those involving discretionary bonuses or relocation payments, provided they meet set criteria, including: (1) repayment terms must be in a separate agreement from the primary employment contract; (2) the worker must be advised of the right to consult an attorney and given at least 5 business days to do so before signing; (3) any repayment obligation for early separation must be prorated based on the remaining retention period (up to 2 years) and cannot accrue interest; (4) the worker must have the option to defer receipt of the payment until the end of the retention period without repayment obligation; and (5) repayment may only apply if the employee leaves voluntarily or is terminated for misconduct. The bill provides penalties for violations at the amount of the greater of a worker’s actual damages or up to $5,000 per worker, injunctive relief, and attorneys’ fees and costs.
- AB 406 expands qualifying reasons for use of paid and unpaid leaves under state law.
AB 406 expands the permitted uses of California Paid Sick Leave under the Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act of 2014 (“HWHFA”), effective October 1, 2025. AB 406 also updates the state’s unpaid, job-protected leave provisions to align with these expanded uses starting January 1, 2026. Under the new amendments, employees now may use paid sick leave, and certain unpaid leave, if the employee or a covered family member are victims of certain crimes and need to attend related judicial proceedings. Covered proceedings include, but are not limited to, delinquency hearings, bail or release determinations, plea or sentencing hearings, postconviction proceedings, and any hearing where the victim’s rights are at stake. For this purpose, a “victim” includes individuals harmed physically, psychologically, or financially as a result of violent felonies, serious felonies, or felony theft and embezzlement, whether actual or attempted.
- SB 513 broadens definition of “personnel records.”
On October 11, 2025, SB 513 was signed into law, amending California’s definition of personnel records to include “education or training records.” The law requires employers who maintain education or training records to ensure the records include the following information: the name of the employee, the name of the training provider, the duration and date of the training, the core competencies of a training course, and the resulting certification or qualification.
- SB 590 extends eligibility for state paid family leave benefits.
SB 590, which also was signed into law on October 13, 2025, expands eligibility for benefits under the paid family leave program to include individuals who take time off work to care for a seriously ill designated person. The law’s definition of a “designated person” will include any care recipient related by blood or whose association with the individual is the equivalent of a family relationship. SB 590 will take effect July 1, 2028.
- SB 617 adds to the notice requirements under CalWARN.
SB 617 was signed into law on October 1, 2025, expanding the information covered employers must include in their written notice required under the state’s Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (“CalWARN”). The amendments to CalWARN require employers to notify employees whether the company plans to coordinate services through the local workforce development board, another entity, or not at all. Covered employers must also provide the local workforce development board’s contact information and a description of its services in the notice as well, regardless of whether the company plans to coordinate services with the board, and the notice must include information about the statewide assistance program known as CalFresh, the CalFresh benefits helpline, and a link to the CalFresh internet website. CalWARN covers employers with 75 or more employees, including part-time employees, and requires 60 days’ advance notice for plant closures, layoffs of 50 or more employees, and relocations of at least 100 miles affecting any number of employees. SB 617 is slated to take effect on January 1, 2026.
- California introduces new employer notice and training requirements related to law enforcement interactions at the workplace.
Under California’s new Workplace Know Your Rights Act, effective February 1, 2026, employers must provide employees a stand-alone written notice of workers’ rights when interacting with law enforcement at the workplace, in addition to providing notice to new hires thereafter. This notice builds on existing requirements to provide workers with notice of employee rights related to workers’ compensation, immigration agency inspections, immigration-related practices, and labor-related rights. The act also requires employers to notify an employee’s designated emergency contact if the employee is arrested or detained on their worksite and provide employees the opportunity to designate an emergency contact on or before March 30, 2026. The Labor Commissioner will develop and issue a template notice and videos for employers and employees related to the new law by July 1, 2026.
- SB 303 introduces protections for an employee’s good faith participation in bias-mitigation training.
On October 1, 2025, Governor Newsom signed SB 303 into law, establishing that an employee’s assessment, testing, admission, or acknowledgment of their own personal bias, when made in good faith and solicited or required as part of a bias mitigation training, does not, by itself, constitute unlawful discrimination. Effective January 1, 2026, this law amends the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (“FEHA”), which requires employers to prevent workplace discrimination and harassment.
- SB 19 criminalizes threats of mass violence against California workplaces.
On October 11, 2025, SB19 was also signed into law, criminalizing threats of mass violence made against workplaces, as well as schools, houses of worship, and medical facilities. In addition to verbal threats of violence, the law covers images or threats posted online. While SB 19 is not aimed directly at employers, the new law provides a resource for California employers to protect employees from threats of violence.
- SB 464 expands pay-data reporting requirements.
On October 13, 2025, Governor Newsom signed SB 464 into law, expanding the state’s pay‑data reporting requirements for employers. Effective immediately, the law mandates that private employers with 100 or more employees collect and store demographic information used for pay‑data reporting separately from employees’ personnel files and requires courts to impose civil penalties against employers who fail to file the required report upon request from the CRD. Previously, courts had discretion in imposing civil penalties. Effective January 1, 2027, SB 464 also increases the number of job categories in which pay bands must be reported from 10 to 23.
- SB 642 amends equal pay requirements to clarify certain definitions and extend the statute of limitations for wage-related actions.
SB 642, which was enacted on October 8, 2025 and took effect immediately, introduced several amendments to California’s equal pay requirements. The amendments revise the definition of “pay scale” to mean the employer’s good faith estimate of the salary or hourly wage range that the employer reasonably expects to pay for the position. SB 642 also defines “sex,” wages,” and “wage rates” for purposes of the equal pay requirements. The amendments also extend the time to bring a civil action to recover wages from two years to three years and provide that employees are entitled to obtain relief for the entire period of time in which a violation of its provisions exists, not to exceed six years.
- SB 261 increases enforcement authority for wage judgments and mandates recovery of attorney fees.
SB 261, signed into law on October 13, 2025, expands the authority of the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement in wage‑claim matters, including actions to recover wages, penalties, and other demands for compensation. The law imposes new civil penalties, up to three times the outstanding judgment amount, on employers that fail to satisfy wage judgments within 180 days. Additionally, it mandates that prevailing employees (or the entity acting on their behalf) recover attorney fees and costs when enforcing such judgments.
- SB 53 establishes broad AI regulations mandating standardized disclosure and transparency practices.
SB 53, also known as the Transparency in Frontier Artificial Intelligence Act, establishes several new requirements for certain “frontier” developers of artificial intelligence (“AI”) models. Effective January 1, 2026, SB 53 introduces comprehensive state-level requirements for developers of “frontier” AI models, meaning large-scale systems trained using massive computational resources. SB 53 applies to “large frontier developers,” defined as companies with annual revenues over $500 million that train foundation models using a quantity of computer power greater than 10^26 integer or floating-point operations. Covered developers are required to publish risk-mitigation frameworks, complete transparency reports before deploying models, and submit regular assessments to the California Office of Emergency Services. The law also mandates prompt reporting of critical safety incidents, including cybersecurity breaches or loss of model control with catastrophic potential. In addition, the bill introduces new whistleblower protections for AI safety professionals and authorizes the creation of a public cloud computing initiative, CalCompute, aimed at promoting equitable access to computer resources for safe and ethical AI development. While the law’s requirements are narrowly tailored to the most powerful AI systems, companies developing or deploying large-scale AI in California should closely monitor forthcoming guidance and begin evaluating their compliance readiness.
- AB 250 extends statute of limitations for certain employment-related sexual assault claims.
On October 13, 2025, AB 250 became law, extending the timeframe during which certain sexual assault claims may be revived. Under the amended law, individuals may bring sexual assault claims, including derivative claims for wrongful termination and sexual harassment, among others, that would otherwise be barred prior to January 1, 2026 because the applicable statute of limitations has or had expired, by demonstrating that one or more entities legally responsible for damages engaged in a cover up. AB 250 defines a “cover up” as a “concerted effort to hide evidence relating to a sexual assault that incentivizes individuals to remain silent.” The bill permits any such claim to proceed if already pending in court on October 13, 2025, or, if not filed by that date, to be commenced between January 1, 2026, and December 31, 2027.
- SB 477 amends the California Fair Employment and Housing Act to expand circumstances for tolling the statute of limitations and clarifies definition of a “group or class complaint.”
On October 3, 2025, SB 477 was enacted. Effective January 1, 2026, the law will expand the circumstances for tolling the statute of limitations for California individuals to file a civil lawsuit under the California Fair Employment and Housing Act when the individual appeals a decision from, or enters into an agreement with, the California Civil Rights Department (“CRD”). The law also clarifies the definition of a “group or class complaint” and requires the CRD to fully resolve all related proceedings before issuing a right-to-sue notice for group or class matters.
- AB 1523 revises rules for court-ordered mediation and increases maximum amount in controversy for mandatory mediation.
Effective January 1, 2027, AB 1523 amends California’s court-ordered mediation rules to increase the maximum amount in controversy for mandatory mediation from $50,000 to $75,000. Under AB 1523, a court only may order mediation when the case is set for trial, at least one party has expressed interest in mediation, no ongoing discovery disputes exist, and parties are notified of their option to choose a mutually agreeable mediator. If parties cannot agree on a mediator within 15 days, the court will select one at no cost. The mediation must be completed at least 120 days before the trial date and can be conducted remotely if all parties agree. The mediation must conclude with either a mutually acceptable agreement or a statement of non-agreement, and the determination of the case’s value will be made without prejudice.
- AB 1514 extends independent contractor exemptions for manicurists and commercial fishers.
On October 3, 2025, Governor Newsom signed AB 1514 into law, extending the application of the temporary exemptions from the “ABC” test for employment status for licensed manicurists and commercial fishers. California law requires a 3-part test, commonly known as the “ABC” test, to determine if a worker is an employee or independent contractor and exempts specified occupations and business relationships from the application of the test. These exemptions include licensed manicurists and commercial fishers working on an American vessel. AB 1514 deletes the inoperative date for the manicurist exemption, which expired on January 1, 2025, and requires that, until January 1, 2029, the exemption is reapplied to certain licensed manicurists. AB 1514 also amends the inoperative date for an exemption for certain commercial fishers, which made such workers eligible for unemployment insurance benefits subject to certain conditions, from January 1, 2026 until January 1, 2031.
- SB 809 establishes the Construction Trucking Employer Amnesty Program relating to classification of construction drivers as independent contractors.
SB 809, the third Bill signed into law by Governor Newsom on October 11, 2025, establishes the Construction Trucking Employer Amnesty Program (“CTEA Program”) and clarifies worker classification for certain construction trucking workers. Similar to California’s Motor Carrier Employer Amnesty Program, the CTEA Program allows eligible construction contractors to resolve misclassification claims involving construction drivers by entering into an agreement with the Labor Commissioner prior to January 1, 2029. These agreements must include certain elements, including, but not limited to, an agreement by the construction contractor to classify construction drivers as employees and to pay all wages, benefits, and taxes owed, if any. Separately, SB 809 also establishes that it is declarative of existing law that mere ownership of a vehicle used by a worker providing labor or services for remuneration does not render the individual an independent contractor. Finally, SB 809 establishes that it is declarative of existing law that Labor Code Section 2802, which requires reimbursement of necessary business-related expenses, applies to an employee’s use of a vehicle, including a personal or commercial vehicle, which the employee owns and uses to perform their duties.
- SB 20 introduces worker protections related to high-exposure trigger tasks on artificial stone.
SB 20, known as the Silicosis Training, Outreach, and Prevention (STOP) Act, was signed into law by Governor Newsom on October 13, 2025. The STOP Act aims to enhance worker safety in the stone fabrication industry and address rising cases of silicosis among workers exposed to crystalline silica dust. The new law prohibits the use of dry cutting methods on artificial stone and requires employers to implement effective “wet” methods to suppress dust. Covered employers will also be required to train workers who perform high-exposure trigger tasks, as defined by the law, by July 1, 2026 and submit a written attestation that workers have received the mandatory training each year to the California Division of Occupational Safety & Health. The law also requires employers to report cases of silicosis to the state and provides that violations may result in fines or shutdown orders.