2026 California Employment Law Updates
Suggested Action Plan:
- Coordinate with Human Resources Information System (HRIS) and Learning Management System (LMS) vendors to ensure records can be accessed in a usable form.
- Ensure compliance with deadlines specified in the statute since noncompliance can result in penalties, legal costs, etc.
C. AB 406 — Expanded Victim Protections & Paid Sick Leave Use
This “clean-up bill” to AB 2499 (2025) now allows victims and impacted family members to take leave for judicial proceedings related to a greatly expanded list of “covered crimes.”
Expanded Definition of “Victim”:
Includes individuals harmed by:
- Violent felonies
- Serious felonies
- Certain felony theft/embezzlement offenses
- Vehicular manslaughter, felony DUI causing injury
- Hit-and-run causing injury/death
- Child abuse, felony domestic violence, stalking
- Felony elder abuse, assault, solicitation for murder, and other serious felonies
Employees may also use Paid Sick Leave to attend judicial proceedings.
This bill prohibits discharge, discrimination, or retaliation against employees who are victims-or family members of victims-from taking time off to attend judicial proceedings related to specified crimes.
Suggested Action Plan:
- Ensure managers and HR understand these protections to avoid inadvertent retaliation
- Update crime victim leave policy and accommodation policy for victims of crime
- Update sick leave pay policy to include use for qualifying acts of violence
- Look for new government brochure
C. AB 10 – Protection Against Threats in the Workplace adds section 422.3 to the California Penal Code, making it an explicit criminal offense to make credible threat of mass violence against persons “at a daycare, school, university, workplace, house of worship, or medical facility.”
D. SB 617 — New Cal-WARN Notice Requirements
Effective Jan 1, 2026, Cal-WARN notices must now contain additional disclosures regarding coordination with workforce development services. Cal-WARN applies to all employers in California that operate a California “covered establishment,” that employs, or has employed within the preceding 12 months, 75 or more persons and will suffer a “mass layoff,” of 50 or more employees within a 30-day period regardless of % of workforce a “termination,” or Plant closure affecting any amount of employees or a “relocation” of at least 100 miles affecting any amount of employees of a covered establishment. The employer must provide the employees, the California Employment Development Department, the local workforce investment board, the chief elected county official and the chief elected city official for the worksite where the mass layoff, termination or relocation is scheduled to occur, at least 60 days’ notice before the effective date.
Required elements now include providing the following information in writing:
- Employer’s functioning email and phone number
- A functioning email and telephone number of the local workforce development board must be included
- Employers must include scripted language highlighting the services provided by the workforce development board
- Description of rapid response activities
- CalFresh program description, helpline number, and website link
Applies even if the employer does not plan to coordinate services.
Penalties
If employers do not provide all of the required information listed above, the notice will not constitute a bona fide Cal-WARN Notice, and the employer may be subject to penalties or other legal consequences (e.g. up to 60 days of pay for each laid off employee)