Several new employment laws only weeks away

Starting January 1, 2023, a new group of employer obligations will land. Here are some of the most significant.

Pay transparency

California Senate Bill (SB) 1162 requires employers of 100 or more contract employees to submit annual pay data reports regarding the contract employees. It also requires employers of 15 or more employees to provide the pay scale for a position in any job posting.

New FEHA obligations

California SB 523 and California Assembly Bill (AB) 2960 amend the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) to prohibit employment discrimination based on an individual’s reproductive health decision-making. The bills expand required health plan coverage for contraceptives.

The bills also amend the FEHA to toll right-to-sue notice deadlines during mandatory or voluntary dispute resolution proceedings.

California AB 2282 expands the definition of hate crimes in places of employment to include hate imagery.

New COVID-19-related laws

California AB 1751, for workers’ compensation purposes, extends to January 1, 2024, the rebuttable presumption that an employee’s illness resulting from COVID-19 was sustained in the course of employment.

California AB 2693 amends and extends until January 1, 2024, employers’ duties when notified of potential exposure to COVID-19. It gives employers the option to post a notice of potential worksite COVID-19 exposure on existing employee portals instead of providing written notice.

Expanded benefits