California Workplace Know Your Rights Notice Requirement Is in Effect
•February 2, 2026
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Why It Matters
The law creates immediate compliance risk and operational overhead for California employers, while reinforcing employee protections that could reshape HR and immigration‑related practices across the state’s labor market.
Key Takeaways
- •SB 294 notice required annually, starting Feb 1 2026.
- •Notice must cover compensation, immigration, union, constitutional rights.
- •Employers face $500 per employee fines for non‑compliance.
- •Emergency‑contact notification rule adds March 30 2026 deadline.
- •Multilingual templates available; compliance simplifies risk management.
Pulse Analysis
California’s push for greater transparency in the workplace reflects a broader national trend toward codifying employee rights, especially around immigration enforcement and civil liberties. SB 294 builds on earlier state statutes that required posting of I‑9 inspection notices, but expands the scope to include comprehensive information on workers’ compensation, unionization, and constitutional protections. By mandating a single, easy‑to‑understand document, the law aims to reduce confusion among a multilingual workforce and pre‑empt disputes that could arise from ambiguous rights explanations.
For employers, the practical implications are significant. Human‑resources teams must integrate the notice into onboarding workflows, ensure annual distribution via the same channels used for other employment communications, and retain proof of delivery. The California Labor Commissioner’s ready‑made templates in English, Spanish, and additional languages streamline this process, yet companies must still manage translation accuracy and employee acknowledgment records. The emergency‑contact provision adds another layer: firms need a secure system for employees to designate contacts and for automatic notifications when arrests occur, all while tracking compliance to avoid daily penalties that can quickly exceed $10,000 per worker.
Beyond California, SB 294 may set a benchmark for other jurisdictions considering similar disclosures, especially as federal immigration policy remains volatile. Employers with multi‑state operations should evaluate their existing compliance platforms for scalability, potentially adopting centralized notice‑management software to handle varied state requirements. Proactive investment now can mitigate costly fines, protect brand reputation, and demonstrate a commitment to employee rights—an increasingly important factor for talent attraction and retention in a competitive labor market.
California Workplace Know Your Rights Notice Requirement Is in Effect
California’s Workplace – Know Your Rights Act (SB 294)
Effective February 1, 2026, all California employers must provide a standalone, written notice to all current employees—using the method the employer normally uses to communicate job or employment information, such as personal service, email, or text message—and to all new hires at the time of hire. This notice must be provided annually and must include information about, among other things, workers’ compensation rights (including disability pay and medical care), immigration‑related protections, the right to unionize or engage in protected concerted activity, and certain constitutional rights.
The law also requires annual notice of existing workplace protections related to immigration status, including:
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The right to advance notice of inspection by immigration authorities. An employer receiving notice of an inspection of I‑9 forms or other records by immigration authorities must post a notice informing workers and their union representatives, if applicable. The I‑9 inspection notice posting requirement was established by earlier California law.
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Protection from retaliatory immigration‑related practices. California employers are prohibited from threatening or taking immigration‑related actions against employees who exercise their rights. Prohibited actions include refusing to accept identification documents that appear genuine during the I‑9 process; using E‑Verify to re‑verify employment when not required to do so; and reporting or threatening to report an employee or a family member to the police or a state or federal agency.
The notice must also include information regarding California workers’ rights under the Fourth and Fifth Amendments during workplace interactions with law enforcement.
Pursuant to the new law, the California Labor Commissioner has developed a template notice to assist employers in complying with this requirement. The template is currently available in English and Spanish (links below), with additional languages—including Chinese, Tagalog, Vietnamese, Korean, Hindi, Urdu, and Punjabi—to follow.
Failure to comply with the notice requirements can result in fines of up to $500 per employee.
In addition to the notice obligations, by March 30, 2026 employers must allow employees to designate an emergency contact in the event they are arrested or detained on their worksite and in certain other circumstances. Employers must also notify that contact if the employee is arrested or detained. Failing to notify a designated emergency contact can result in fines of up to $500 per employee per day, up to a maximum of $10,000 per employee.
Apart from an employee’s right to designate a specific emergency contact and to have them notified, SB 294 does not create new substantive labor or immigration rights. However, employers are advised to act promptly to stay compliant and to protect themselves from avoidable penalties.
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