Existing law, the California Worker Adjustment and Retraining Act (Cal/WARN Act) , prohibits an employer from ordering a mass layoff, relocation, or termination at a covered establishment unless, 60 days before the order takes effect, the employer gives written notice of the order to the employees affected by the order and to the Employment Development Department and certain local officials. Existing law makes an employer who fails to give specified notice regarding a mass layoff, relocation, or termination subject to a civil penalty of not more than $500 for each day of the employer's violation. This bill would revise the Cal/WARN Act to also require an employer giving notice of a mass layoff, relocation, or termination caused in whole or in substantial part by an artificial intelligence (AI) system or other automated technology replacing or automating employment positions to include certain information in the notice, including the job functions performed by workers that will be automated by AI or other automated technology. The bill would require the department to publish a summary of the notices received on its internet website and to post a quarterly statewide summary of technological displacements reported. The bill would require the department, on or before January 1, 2028, to submit a report to the Legislature on artificial intelligence's effects on business hiring practices, including its impact on industries and occupations at the state and regional level. The bill would repeal the provision requiring that report on January 1, 2029.
This measure would proclaim July 21, 2026, as Black Women's Equal Pay Day in recognition of the need to eliminate the gender gap in earnings by African American women and to promote policies to ensure equal pay for all.
This measure would proclaim April 10, 2026, as Dolores Huerta Day in California and would encourage all public schools and educational institutions to conduct exercises remembering her, recognizing her accomplishments, and familiarizing pupils with her contributions to California.
This California Senate Resolution designates September 21 as Landscapers Appreciation Day to honor the workers who maintain residential and commercial outdoor spaces. The bill highlights the significant role of landscapers in community beauty, environmental health, and wildfire prevention, while noting that many face challenges such as heat exposure, limited benefits, and informal employment arrangements. It formally supports policies aimed at uplifting both formal and informal landscaping workers and urges the Governor to issue a proclamation encouraging public observance of the day through educational activities.
Existing law, the CalSavers Retirement Savings Trust Act, administered by the CalSavers Retirement Savings Board (board) , establishes the CalSavers Retirement Savings Program (program) and the CalSavers Retirement Savings Trust (trust) . Under existing law, the trust consists of a program fund and an administrative fund with trust moneys that are continuously appropriated and administered by the CalSavers Retirement Savings Board for the purpose of promoting greater retirement savings for California private employees. Existing law requires eligible employers to offer a payroll deposit retirement savings arrangement so that eligible employees may contribute a portion of their salary or wages to a retirement savings program account in the program, as specified. Existing law defines "eligible employer" as a person or entity engaged in a business, industry, profession, trade, or other enterprise in the state, whether for profit or not for profit, excluding, among others, specified federal, state, and local governmental entities, with at least one eligible employee and that satisfies certain requirements to establish or participate in a payroll deposit retirement savings arrangement. This bill would enact the Savings Access and Vested Empowerment (SAVE) for All Workers Act, which would recast those provisions to expand that definition of "eligible employer" to include household employers, defined as those who have hired someone to work in or around their home for the benefit of their personal household and who provide the employee a W-2 federal tax form. By expanding eligibility under these provisions, the bill would remove a restriction limiting expenditure of funds and authorize the expenditure of continuously appropriated moneys for a new purpose, thereby making an appropriation. Existing law requires the board, subject to its authority and fiduciary duty, to design and implement the program. Existing law authorizes the board to provide for investment in myRAs. Existing law requires the program to include, as determined by the board, one or more payroll deduction IRA arrangements. Existing law provides the board with the power and authority to, among other things, make and enter into contracts necessary for the administration of the trust and to disseminate information concerning tax credits available to small business owners for allowing their employees to participate in the program and the federal Retirement Savings Contribution Credit (Saver's Credit) . This bill would eliminate the authority of the board to invest in myRAs and would make related conforming changes. The bill would require the program, with board approval, to establish an IRA on behalf of participants who are eligible to receive federal or state retirement benefits, as specified, and notify participants at least 30 days prior to the creation of the accounts. This bill would additionally authorize the board to assess the feasibility of multi-state or regional agreements to administer the program and to disseminate information concerning tax credits available to small business owners for allowing their employees to participate in the successor to the Saver's Credit, known as the Saver's Match. Existing law requires the board, prior to opening the program for enrollment, to establish a retirement investments clearinghouse on its internet website and a vendor registration process, if there is sufficient interest by vendors to participate and provide the necessary funding. Existing law requires vendors that would like to participate in the board's retirement investments clearinghouse and be listed on the board's internet website as a registered vendor to provide specified information to the board. This bill would eliminate the above-described requirement for the board to establish a retirement investments clearinghouse on its internet website and a vendor registration process, and would instead require vendors that would like to contract with the board to provide specified information to the board. The bill would make related conforming changes. Existing law authorizes an employer to choose to have a payroll deposit retirement savings arrangement to allow employee participation in the program under the terms and conditions prescribed by the board. Existing law requires, by December 31, 2025, eligible employers with one or more eligible employees and do not offer a retirement savings program, as provided, to have a payroll deposit retirement savings arrangement to allow employee participation in the program. Existing law authorizes the board to implement annual automatic escalation of employee contributions and prohibits contributions subject to automatic escalation from exceeding 8% of salary. Existing law provides the board the powers and duties necessary to administer the enforcement of employer compliance, as provided. This bill would, beginning December 31, 2027 and by December 31 of each calendar year, require eligible employers with one or more eligible employees, as described, who do not offer a retirement savings program, as specified, to have a payroll deposit retirement savings arrangement to allow employee participation in the program. The bill would instead prohibit contributions subject to automatic escalation from exceeding 10% of salary. The bill would require the board to notify participants of this increase in salary subject to automatic escalation. Existing law requires the board to issue to each employer who fails to allow its eligible employees to participate in the program, as provided, a notice of penalty application. Existing law requires each eligible employer that, without good cause, fails to allow its employees to participate in the program, as specified, after the board serves a final notice of penalty application, to be subject to a penalty of $250 per eligible employee and an additional penalty of $500 per eligible employee if noncompliance continues, as described. Existing law requires the Franchise Tax Board to issue a first notice of the imposition of a penalty to an eligible employer for failure to comply after the board informs the Franchise Tax Board of the eligible employer's noncompliance. Existing law requires amounts collected by the Franchise Tax Board for these purposes to be transmitted to the board for deposit in the trust. This bill would additionally subject each eligible employer that fails to allow its eligible employees to participate in the program after the above-described penalties have been assessed to a penalty of $500 per eligible employee. The bill would prohibit the penalties assessed from being imposed more than once every 180 days since the last violation. The bill would require the Franchise Tax Board to issue subsequent notices of imposition of penalties for noncompliance, as specified. By depositing additional penalties into the trust, a continuously appropriated fund, the bill would make an appropriation.
Existing law requires a skilled and trained workforce to be used in the construction, alteration, demolition, installation, repair, or maintenance work of certain public works and privately-owned facilities engaged in certain petroleum-related activities, manufacturing hydrogen, biofuels, or certain specified chemicals, or capturing, sequestering, or using carbon dioxide, as specified. Existing law defines "skilled and trained workforce" to include, among other criteria, skilled journeypersons who are paid at least a rate equivalent to the applicable prevailing hourly wage rate. This bill would require an owner, operator, or developer of a facility that will be used for the research, development, or production of pharmaceutical products to, when contracting for the performance of construction, alteration, demolition, installation, repair, or maintenance work on the facility, require that its contractors and subcontractors use a skilled and trained workforce to perform all onsite work within an apprenticeable occupation in the building and construction trades, and would require all contractors and subcontractors performing the work to use a skilled and trained workforce. The bill would require the owner, operator, or developer of the facility to provide to the Labor Commissioner a monthly report demonstrating compliance with the bill's provisions that includes, among other things, the full name and other identifying information relating to each worker relied on to satisfy the apprenticeship graduation percentage requirements. If the Labor Commissioner determines that a contractor or subcontractor failed to use a skilled and trained workforce, the bill would require the contractor or subcontractor to forfeit, as a civil penalty to the state, up to $5,000 per month of work performed for a first violation, and, for a second or subsequent violation, up to $10,000 per month of work performed. The bill would authorize the Labor Commissioner to reduce or waive the penalty under specified circumstances.
Existing law establishes the Department of Transportation and requires it to improve and maintain the state highways. Existing law authorizes the department to enter into any contracts required for the performance of its duties, as provided. Existing law establishes bid preferences in public contracting for certain types of bidders, including, but not limited to, small business and microbusiness bidders. This bill would, on and after January 1, 2028, require the department to provide certain bid preferences to a contractor or subcontractor with an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) in which 30% or more is owned by the ESOP when the contractor or subcontractor bids or is part of a bid on a state-funded construction contract, as specified. The bill would make it unlawful for a person, contractor, or subcontractor to engage in specified behaviors related to the fraudulent obtaining or retaining of an ESOP bid preference and would subject a person, contractor, or subcontractor engaged in those behaviors to a suspension from bidding on or participating in any contract with the department for certain periods and specified civil penalties.
Existing law defines an assault as an unlawful attempt, coupled with present ability, to commit a violent injury upon the person of another. Existing law defines a battery as any willful and unlawful use of force or violence upon the person of another. Under existing law, an assault or battery committed against specified professionals engaged in the performance of their duties, including peace officers, firefighters, and emergency medical personnel, is punishable by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one year, by a fine not exceeding $2,000, or by both that fine and imprisonment. This bill would make an assault or battery committed against a utility worker, as defined, who is engaged in the performance of their duties punishable by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one year, by a fine not exceeding $2,000, or by both that fine and imprisonment. By expanding the scope of these crimes, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
Existing law requires a person engaged in certain businesses to register with the Labor Commissioner, as provided. This bill would require a staffing agency, as defined, to register, as prescribed, with the commissioner before conducting any business in this state and annually thereafter. The bill would prohibit the commissioner from registering or renewing a registration, unless the staffing agency satisfies certain conditions, including submitting an application that is certified under penalty of perjury to the commissioner for registration or renewal of registration and providing the commissioner proof of a current workers' compensation policy in effect for all employees, as provided. By expanding the scope of the crime of perjury, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. If the commissioner, at any time, finds that the staffing agency does not have the current workers' compensation insurance policy in effect for all employees, this bill would require the commissioner to deny, suspend, or revoke the registration, after a hearing, and notify the Director of Industrial Relations of that matter. The bill would also require the commissioner to post a specified list of registered staffing agencies on the internet website of the Department of Industrial Relations. The bill would prohibit a business from using the services of a staffing agency without a registration pursuant to these provisions. The bill would authorize a registered staffing agency to bring an action against an unregistered staffing agency or a business that uses the services of a staffing agency without a registration, as provided, and would authorize the court to enter an order to enjoin the defendant from engaging in any business as a staffing agency without a registration or using the services of a staffing agency without a registration. The bill would authorize the commissioner to promulgate regulations and rules necessary to carry out these provisions. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
Existing law, the California Refinery and Chemical Plant Worker Safety Act of 1990, requires the Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board and the Division of Occupational Safety and Health to promote worker safety through implementation of training and process safety management practices in refineries, chemical plants, and other appropriate facilities, including by adopting process safety management standards and regulations. The act defines "process safety management" and other terms for its purposes. The act also requires an employer to develop and maintain written safety information, emergency action plans, operating procedures, procedures to manage changes, and inspection and testing programs. This bill would require an employer, in consultation with employees and employee representatives, to develop, implement, and maintain a written plan to effectively provide for employee participation in all process safety management elements. The bill would also require, on or before April 1, 2027, an employer, in consultation with employee and employee representatives, to develop and implement stop work procedures and procedures for reporting and responding to hazards, as specified. The bill would require an employer to document specific information relating to a partial or complete shut down of an operation or process and reports of hazards. The bill would provide how employees who are and who are not represented by an authorized collective bargaining agent participate in the development of these plans and procedures.
