There have been a few bills and new laws recently with this similar title, but this new law was purportedly in direct response to the recent uptick in ICE raids.   And yet, California just has to be California, so there are some other topics tucked into this bill as well. 

The new law requires that  employers provide an annual written notice to each current employee that explains certain workers’ protections against unfair immigration-related practices and their constitutional rights when interacting with law enforcement, along with other “rights in the workplace.”    The first notice must be provided on or before February 1, 2026, and then upon hire and annually thereafter.

The bill and surrounding public messaging suggested that this notice was meant to advise employees of their constitutional and state law rights when faced with immigration and law enforcement issues in the workplace.  But the bill also indicates that the notice must remind California employees of other workplace rights, specifically, the right to organize, the right to file worker’s compensation claims, and other rights to be free from workplace retaliation.  The state finally published its “sample template” for this notice, and the information about immigration rights is not fully addressed until page two.    

While I am not a fan of how California prioritized these topics on their sample form, I am including the link for their English version, below.   There is also a Spanish version online.  We considered preparing another version of this form with all the same information, but honestly, I think we should just use the state provided template.   I am worried that attorneys will focus on this form as another compliance issue, so please, add this form to your list of new hire forms and ensure it gets distributed annually along with any other updated employee handbooks or other forms. 

www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/Know-Your-Rights-Notice/Know-Your-Rights-Notice-English.pdf

Employers must distribute the notice to current California employees (and any collective bargaining reps)  by February 1, 2026, and annually thereafter, using methods like personal service, email, or even text message, as well as new hires upon employment.  Employers must then keep records of their dissemination of this notice.   Add this form to your onboarding packet.  

In addition, upon request, employers must notify a designated emergency contact in the event an employee is arrested or detained at work.   Employers must give employees an opportunity to designate this emergency contact no later than March 30, 2026 (or at the time of hire for employees hired after that date).    We included a policy addressing this in our latest employee handbook update.  IF YOU DID NOT UPDATE YOUR HANDBOOK THIS YEAR – you must still notify employees of this right by March 30, 2026.