California continues to update laws regarding notices that employers are required to provide to their employees. We have previously written about a new notice required regarding California’s Victims’ Leave law under Assembly Bill 2499 – check out our previous article here.

With the passing of Senate Bill 294, the “Workplace Know Your Rights Act”, employers will need to be cognizant of another new notice – this one regarding employee rights in the workplace.  SB 294 also provides that employers must allow employees to designate an emergency contact to be notified if the employee is arrested or detained at work or during work hours if the employer has knowledge of the event. 

SB 294 creates two major new obligations for employers beginning in 2026.

1. Annual “Know Your Rights” Notice (to be Provided by February 1, 2026)

SB 294 requires employers to provide all employees with a stand-alone written notice of their workplace rights by February 1, 2026, and:

• At the time of hire; and
• Annually to employees and any authorized representative.

The law dictates that the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (“DLSE”) is to prepare a template notice by January 1, 2026, summarizing employee rights relating to workers’ compensation, immigration-related protections, the right to concerted activity/organizing, and an employee’s constitutional rights during law-enforcement interactions at work. The notice template will be provided in English, Spanish, Chinese, Tagalog, Vietnamese, Korean, Hindi, Urdu, and Punjabi, and will be updated annually. Once the template notice is available, employers should prepare to distribute the notice to employees and include it with onboarding packets for new hires

2. New Emergency-Contact Requirement for Arrests or Detentions (to be Implemented by March 30, 2026)

SB 294 also requires employers to give employees the option to identify:

• An emergency contact, and
• Indicate whether the employer should notify that contact if the employee is arrested or detained while performing job duties.

Employers are also required to allow an employee to provide updated emergency contact information through the duration of employment. If the arrest or detention takes place at the worksite, or an employer has actual knowledge of an arrest/detention taking place while the employee was working off site, and the employee opted for notification, the employer must promptly contact the designated person.  Penalties for failing to follow these requirements amount to five hundred dollars ($500) per employee for each day the violation occurs, to a maximum of $10,000 per employee.

What Employers Should Do Now

1. Monitor the DLSE for the official notice template and prepare to adopt the template once released.
2. Update onboarding, handbooks, and annual-notice processes.
3. Add a new emergency-contact/notification field to HRIS and personnel forms.
4. Train supervisors on how to handle required notifications related to potential arrests/detentions.
5. Maintain documentation of notices and contact designations.

SB 294 significantly expands employer notice duties and creates a new process tied to employee arrests or detentions at work. Early preparation—updating forms, HR systems, and annual-notice practices—will help employers avoid penalties and ensure smooth compliance in 2026.

This publication is published by the law firm of Ervin Cohen & Jessup LLP. The publication is intended to present an overview of current legal trends; no article should be construed as representing advice on specific, individual legal matters. Articles may be reprinted with permission and acknowledgment. ECJ is a registered service mark of Ervin Cohen & Jessup LLP. All rights reserved.