Key Takeaways
- Review your policies to be sure they are up to date.
- Make sure you are complying with all applicable minimum wage obligations, including local ordinances and industry-specific requirements.
- Confirm that you are complying with the notice requirements of employment laws, new and old.
- Review any contracts in place with freelancers to conform to new freelance worker protections.
California Minimum Wage
The California minimum wage has now increased from $16 per hour to $16.50 per hour. Correspondingly, the minimum salary threshold for exempt employees has increased to $68,640 annually, $5,720 monthly or $1,320 weekly. Keep in mind that local minimum wage requirements, which may impose higher minimum wages than $16.50 per hour, remain in effect. In addition, certain industries, including healthcare and fast food, are subject to separate minimum wage requirements.
Ban on Driver’s License Discrimination (SB 1100)
This new law makes it an unlawful employment practice to include a statement in a job advertisement, posting, application or other material that an applicant must have a driver’s license, unless the employer meets certain conditions. Specifically, an employer may still require that an applicant have a driver’s license if the employer reasonably (1) expects driving to be one of the position’s job functions and (2) believes that satisfying the job function using alternative transportation “would not be comparable in travel time or cost to the employer.” SB 1100 defines “alternative form of transportation” to include using a ride-hailing service, using a taxi, carpooling, bicycling and walking. For example, delivery drivers for a furniture manufacturer would likely be exempt from SB 1100 because for a delivery driver, driving is a function of the position, and an employee would be unable to satisfy the functions of that position by utilizing alternative transportation such as a bike or taxi.
Expanded Paid Sick Days for Victims of Violence (AB 2499)
Previously, Labor Code Sections 230 and 230.1 provided protections for victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking or other crimes, as well as time off to serve on a jury or comply with a subpoena. Under AB 2499, these protections are now part of the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) and will be enforced by the California Civil Rights Department (CRD). Under AB 2499, time off is now allowed for obtaining relief not just from a “crime or abuse” but also from a “qualifying act of violence,” which is defined as any of the following:
- Domestic violence.
- Sexual assault.
- Stalking.
- An act, conduct or pattern of conduct that includes any of the following:
- An individual causes bodily injury or death to another individual.
- An individual exhibits, draws, brandishes, or uses a firearm or other dangerous weapon with respect to another individual.
- An individual uses or makes a reasonably perceived or actual threat to use force against another individual to cause physical injury or death.
Additionally, family members of victims may take time off for obtaining relief from a qualifying act of violence. The definition of “family member” now follows the FEHA definition, which includes an employee’s child, parent, grandparent, grandchild, sibling, spouse, domestic partner or designated person.
Further, “obtaining relief” includes a broad range of activities, including taking time to obtain restraining orders, seeking medical attention, obtaining certain services or counseling, relocating, enrolling children in a new school, obtaining legal services and participating in safety planning.
Depending on the circumstances, employers may limit the amount of leave employees can take under the new law. First, a victim of a qualifying act of violence may take no more than 12 weeks of unpaid leave. Second, when an employee’s family member is a victim of a nonfatal crime, the employee may take no more than 10 days of leave. Third, if an employee’s family member is a victim of a nonfatal crime and the employee takes leave for the limited purpose of relocating or securing a new residence and enrolling a child in a new school or child care program, the employee may take no more than five days of leave.
Not only are employees able to take time off if they or a family member experiences a qualifying act of violence, but also they are eligible for reasonable accommodations, which may include, among other things, transfer, reassignment, modified schedule [or] changed work telephone.
Employers must provide written notice to employees of their rights under this new law. Notice must be provided to all employees upon hire, annually, at any time upon request and anytime an employee informs an employer that the employee or the employee’s family member is a victim. The CRD is required to publish a form notice no later than July 1, 2025.
Revision to Paid Family Leave Program (AB 2123)
The existing Paid Family Leave (PFL) program provides wage replacement benefits to workers who take time off to care for seriously ill family members, to bond with a minor child, or to assist military family members on or called to active duty. Previously, employers could require employees to take up to two weeks of accrued vacation before accessing PFL benefits. However, under AB 2123, employers can no longer require employees to take accrued vacation before using PFL benefits.
Ban on Captive Audience Meetings (SB 399)
SB 399 explicitly prohibits employers from subjecting or threatening to subject employees to discrimination, retaliation, termination or another adverse action for declining to attend an employer-sponsored meeting or declining to participate in communications with the employer on religious or political matters, including meetings regarding union organization. The new law only relates to political or religious matters, so it in no way prevents employers from mandating training for employees. Notably, California business groups have sued to stop the implementation of SB 399, arguing it violates the rights to free speech and equal protection under the 1st and 14th amendments. Should SB 399 be repealed, we will provide an update. For now, employers that violate the act are liable for a civil penalty of $500 per employee for each violation.
Freelance Workers Protection Act (SB 988)
Under the new Freelance Workers Protection Act (FWPA), “freelance worker” is defined as a person or an organization composed of no more than one person, whether or not incorporated or employing a trade name, that is hired or retained as a bona fide independent contractor by the hiring party to provide professional services in exchange for an amount equal to or greater than $250. The FWPA only applies to freelance-style services listed in California Labor Code Section 2778(b)(2).
The FWPA requires the hiring party to keep the contract for at least four years and to give a signed copy to the freelance worker. Moreover, the new law provides that an agreement between a hiring party and a freelance worker must be in writing and include:
- Names and addresses of both parties.
- An itemized list of services, their value and the compensation method.
- Payment due dates or mechanisms for determining them.
- The date by which a freelance worker must submit a list of services rendered under the contract for purposes of timely payment of compensation.
In addition, SB 988 requires a hiring party to pay a freelance worker the compensation specified by a contract for professional services on or before the date specified by the contract or, if the contract does not specify a date, no later than 30 days after completion of the freelance worker’s services.
The new law authorizes an aggrieved freelance worker or a public prosecutor to bring a civil action to enforce these provisions. And importantly, SB 988 prohibits a hiring party from discriminating or taking adverse action against a freelance worker for opposing any practice prohibited by the FWPA, participating in proceedings related to the enforcement of the FWPA or seeking to enforce rights under the FWPA.
Finally, SB 988 only applies to contracts entered into or renewed on or after Jan. 1, 2025. So be sure to consider SB 988 before renewing any freelance contracts in 2025.
Revision to the CROWN Act (AB 1815)
The CROWN Act is a preexisting law that prohibits discrimination based on a person’s hair texture or protective hairstyles, including braids, locs and twists. AB 1815 changes the CROWN Act’s prohibition of race discrimination to include any traits associated with race – not just those “historically” associated with race.
New Notice Requirement for Whistleblower Statutes (AB 2299)
California law requires employers to post a notice that includes information regarding employees’ rights and protections under the state’s whistleblower laws. However, there was no model notice until AB 2299, which requires the California labor commissioner to create and publish a model notice of employees’ rights and responsibilities under the state’s whistleblower law, was signed into law. The model notice is available here.
Disclosure Obligations for Child Labor Audits (AB 3234)
Under AB 3234, employers that “voluntarily” conduct a “social compliance audit” to determine whether child labor is involved in the employer’s “operations or practices” are required to publish the audit findings on the company’s website. AB 3234 does not mandate that employers conduct such an audit; it mandates only that they publish the findings if they do. For employers that conduct such an audit, the law requires the inclusion of the following five pieces of information:
- The year, month, day and time that the audit was conducted, and whether the audit was conducted during a day or night shift.
- Whether the business does or does not engage in or support the use of child labor.
- A copy of any written policies and procedures the business has regarding child employees.
- Whether the business exposes children to any workplace situations that are hazardous or unsafe for their physical and mental health and development.
- Whether children work within or outside regular school hours or during night hours for the business.
To comply with the disclosure requirement, employers must provide a “clear and conspicuous” link to the report. “Clear and conspicuous” means “in larger type than the surrounding text, or in contrasting type, font, or color to the surrounding text of the same size or set off from the surrounding text of the same size by symbols or other marks that call attention to the language.”
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