California Labor Law Updates
The New Year rang in with a number of new requirements for employers in California. Below are summaries of the labor laws that went into effect on January 1.
AB 1041 (Wicks) – Employment: Leave.
This bill expands the class of people for whom an employee may take leave to care for either under the California Family Rights Act or paid sick leave law, to include a designated person, defined as any individual related by blood or whose association with the employee is the equivalent of a family relationship. An employee is authorized to identify a designated person at the time the employee requests the leave and is limited to one designated person per 12-month period. Full text can be found here.
AB 1949 (Low) – Bereavement Leave.
This bill makes it an unlawful employment practice for an employer, who employs 5 or more employees, to refuse to grant a request by an employee to take up to 5 days of bereavement leave upon the death of a family member, if the employee seeking leave was employed for at least 30 days prior to the leave commencement. The leave must be completed within 3 months of the date of death. The leave may be unpaid but the employee is authorized to use other leave balances otherwise available to the employee, including accrued and available sick leave. Full text can be found here.
AB 2188 (Quirk) – Prohibition of Adverse Action for Off-Duty Marijuana Use.
This bill prohibits employers from discriminating against a person in hiring, termination, or any term or condition of employment, or otherwise penalize a person for use of marijuana off the job and away of the workplace. Exceptions include preemployment drug screening as specified, or upon an employer required drug screening test that has found the person to have nonpsychoactive cannabis metabolites in their hair, blood, urine, or other bodily fluids. Certain applicants and employees are exempt from the bill’s provisions, including employees in the building and construction trades, and applicants and employees in positions requiring a federal background investigation or clearance, as specified. Full text can be found here.
SB 1044 (Durazo) – Emergency Condition: Retaliation.
This bill prohibits an employer, in the event of an emergency condition, workplace safety issue, from taking or threatening adverse action against any employee for refusing to report to, or leaving a workplace or worksite because the employee has a reasonable belief the workplace or worksite is unsafe. Full text can be found here.
SB 1162 (Limón) – Employment: Salaries and Wages.
This bill requires an employer, upon request, to provide to an employee the pay scale for the position in which the employee is currently employed. All employers with 15 or more employees are required to include the pay scale for a position in any job posting.
All employers with 100 or more employees are required to submit a pay data report to the California Labor Agency on or before the second Wednesday of May 2023 and each year thereafter. The pay data reports will include the median and mean hourly rate for each combination of race, ethnicity, and sex within each job category. Employers with multiple establishments will be required to submit reports for each establishment. Full text can be found here.
*Bill summaries provided by CapitolTrack.