Senate Bill (SB) 596 represents asignificant development for California general acute care hospitals, acute psychiatric hospitals, and special hospitals. Governor Newsom signed SB 596 into law on October 13, 2025, amending California’s Health and Safety Code § 1280.3 to expand civil penalties for certain licensed health facilities that fail to maintain mandated staffing ratios. While… Continue Reading
Articles Discussing General Workplace Issues in California.
California Employers, Heads Up: Senate Bill 513 Just Changed the Rules on Personnel Files
California Employers, Heads Up: Senate Bill 513 Just Changed the Rules on Personnel Files
Senate Bill (SB) 513, now law, quietly but significantly expands what California employers must track in personnel files and share with employees.
What’s New Under SB 513?
SB 513 amends Labor Code Section 1198.5 to make education and
California Expands Paid Family Leave Eligibility to “Designated Persons”
California Expands Paid Family Leave Eligibility to “Designated Persons”
Following California’s 2023 expansion of job-protected, unpaid family medical leave and paid sick and safe time and its 2025 expansion of job-protected, unpaid leave for victims of violence to include use for a “designated person,” Governor Gavin Newsom signed
tgelbman@littler.com
Leave Laws on the Rise: Sick Leave, CFRA, and Paid Family Leave Updates – Workplace Wake-Up with Jen Shaw
Paid sick leave and family leave laws in California continue to expand at a rapid pace. In this episode, Jen reviews the latest changes to the Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act (expanded sick leave accrual and usage), the California Family Rights Act’s broadened definition of “designated person,” and updates to Paid Family Leave benefits.
Leave Just Got More Complex: What California Employers Must Do in 2026
California’s leave and accommodation landscape is expanding again in 2026 — and employers should start preparing now. With new legislation broadening when employees can take time off and heightened enforcement priorities under the Fair Employment
California Expands Leave and Protections for Victims of Violence
Employees in California who are victims of violence—and their family members who are victims—now have expanded leave protections when they seek legal, medical, mental health, or safety planning services. The new law, Assembly Bill (AB) 406, which Governor Gavin Newsom signed on October 1, 2025, and which took effect immediately,
California’s Evolving Workplace: Highlights from the 2025 Legislative Session
TakeawaysMajor employer obligations affected by new laws include pay reporting, worker rights and leave entitlements.Employers will have to review and update workplace policies and procedures to be compliant with the latest legislative changes.To ensure updates are properly implemented, employers should train management and HR teams on the new laws.Related links
California 2025 Legislative Rundown: Key Changes Coming for Employers
Prior to a deadline of October 13, 2025, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed several bills into law impacting employers’ compliance obligations regarding pay transparency, workplace notices, pay data reporting, paid family leave, tip theft, and more. At the same time, Governor Newsom vetoed a few closely watched bills, including those
Website Tracker Litigation Continues to Pose Compliance Headache: Updates on CIPA and Related Litigation
Plaintiffs’ attorneys have been relentlessly targeting companies that deploy common website tracking tools with demand letters, arbitration, and litigation arguing that their use of chatbots, analytics, and targeted advertising tools violate applicable privacy laws, including but not limited to the California Invasion of Privacy Act (CIPA). This trend has shown
Cannabis at Work: Navigating California’s New Protections – Workplace Wake-Up with Jen Shaw
California’s off-duty cannabis use protections continue to evolve, and employers are scrambling to update policies. In this episode, Jen breaks down recent legislation, including AB 2188 and SB 700, which restrict the use of certain drug tests and prohibit adverse action based on lawful off-duty cannabis use.
California Finalizes Groundbreaking Regulations on AI, Risk Assessments, and Cybersecurity, Part III: Risk Assessments
On September 23, 2025, the California Office of Administrative Law (OAL) approved regulations under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) that specifically address the use of artificial intelligence (AI) and automated decisionmaking technologies (ADMTs), requirements for completing risk assessments, and annual cybersecurity audits. This article is the third and final
California Court of Appeal Upholds Wrongful Discharge Claim Over Polygraph Testing
The California Court of Appeal, Fourth Appellate District, recently issued a significant decision in McDoniel v. Kavry Management, LLC, holding that an employer’s violation of Labor Code section 432.2—California’s prohibition on mandatory polygraph testing—can support a wrongful discharge claim in violation of public policy. The court’s opinion serves as an
Is a CCPA “Risk Assessment” Required When Using Dashcams?
Key Takeaways If you have not reviewed the recently approved, updated CCPA regulations, you might want to soon. There are several new requirements, along with many modifications and clarifications to existing rules. In this post, we discuss a new requirement – performing risk assessments – in the context of dashcam and related fleet management technologies….
Is a CCPA “Risk Assessment” Required When Using Dashcams?
Key Takeaways Outlines basic steps to determine whether a business may need to perform a risk assessment under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA)
California Governor Vetoes Bill That Would Have Required Employers to Provide Notice of AI Use
On October 13, 2025, California Governor Gavin Newsom vetoed legislation that would have regulated employers’ use of artificial intelligence (AI) and other automated decisionmaking technologies in employment-related decisions, citing concerns about “overly broad restrictions” on employers’ use of the technology. The legislation, passed on the heels of the finalization of