New California Laws 2026
relating to employment. AB 1293, Wallis. Workers’ compensation: qualified medical evaluators. Requires the administrative di- rector (AD) of the Division of Workers’ Compensa- tion (DWC) to develop and make available a template qualified medical evaluator (QME) report form and a medical evaluation request form for parties to com- municate with a panel QME. An act to add Section 4062.4 to the Labor Code, relating to workers’ compensation. AB 1340, Wicks. Transportation network company drivers: labor relations. Establishes the Transporta- tion Network Company Drivers Labor Relations Act (act) which provides that Transportation Network Company (TNC) drivers have the right to form, join, and participate in the activities of TNC driver organi- zations, to bargain through representatives of their own choosing, and to engage in concerted activities for the purpose of bargaining or other mutual aid or protection. Provides that the Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) shall administer the act, including overseeing a driver organization election process, sectoral bargaining, and the determination of unfair practices. An act to add Chapter 10.7 (commencing with Sec- tion 7470) to Division 3 of the Business and Profes- sions Code, and to add Section 7927.710 to the Gov- ernment Code, relating to transportation. AB 1398, Valencia. Workers’ compensation. This bill, in order to facilitate the prosecution of workers’ compensation fraud, clarifies the following provi- sions: 1) existing laws on referrals for workers’ com- pensation related-services do not preclude any other applicable laws, and 2) an interested party in a work- ers’ compensation claim must disclose a financial in- terest in an entity providing services, in writing, to a third-party payer or any other entity paid for services furnished pursuant to a referral. An act to amend Section 139.32 of the Labor Code, relating to workers’ compensation. AB 1514, Committee on Labor and Employment. Worker classification: employees and independent contractors: licensed manicurists: commercial fish- ers. Extends the sunset on the AB 5 exemption of licensed manicurists who meet specified conditions to January 1, 2029, while requiring reporting of li- censed manicurists’ misclassification claims and other violations of the labor code to the Legislature. Also extends the sunset on the AB 5 exemption of commercial fishers from January 1, 2026, to January 1, 2031, while maintaining reporting requirements on unemployment insurance (UI) claims of commer- cial fishers by the Employment Development Depart- ment (EDD). An act to amend Sections 2778 and 2783 of the La- bor Code, relating to employment. 2025 Senate Labor Laws SB 8, Ashby. Peace officers: injury or illness: leaves of absence. Expands the application of enhanced temporary disability (TD) benefits (commonly re- ferred to as “4850 time”). An act to amend Section 4850 of the Labor Code,
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ment contract, or to require a worker to execute as a condition of employment or a work relationship a contract that includes, specified contract terms that require a worker to assume a debt if the employment is terminated, except as provided; provides that the unlawful contract is a contract in restraint of trade and is void; and provides for a private right of action. An act to add Section 16608 to the Business and Professions Code, and to add Section 926 to the La- bor Code, relating to employment. AB 751, Gipson. Rest periods: petroleum facilities: safety-sensitive positions. This bill (1) permanently exempts employees holding safety-sensitive posi- tions at a petroleum facility who are covered by a val- id collective bargaining agreement (CBA) from the requirement that that employees be relieved of all du- ties during rest periods. This bill also (2) applies the exemption to the same positions at other refineries, as defined. An act to amend Section 226.75 of the Labor Code, relating to employment. AB 858, Lee. Employment: rehiring and retention: displaced workers. Extends the sunset date of the re- call and reinstatement rights for employees laid off as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, as specified, until January 1, 2027. An act to amend Section 2810.8 of the Labor Code, relating to employment. AB 889, Hadwick. Prevailing wage: per diem wag- es. Makes changes to the annualization rule of fringe benefits for work on both public and private construc- tion projects by requiring annualization to apply to all employer payments not made directly to the worker and by eliminating the exemption that the director of the Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) has determined that annualization would not further the purposes of the law. An act to amend Section 1773.1 of the Labor Code, relating to prevailing wage. AB 1125, Nguyen. Workers’ compensation: peace officers. Expands an existing rebuttable presump- tion of occupational injury for heart trouble in securi- ty officers at Atascadero State Hospital to include any peace officer employed by the Department of State Hospitals (DSH). An act to amend Section 3212.2 of the Labor Code, relating to workers’ compensation. AB 1181, Haney. Firefighters: personal protective equipment. Requires the Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board (OSHSB) to consider mod- ifying its existing safety order regarding firefighter personal protective equipment (PPE) by January 1, 2028, in a manner that addresses National Fire Pro- tection Association (NFPA) performance standards that are not relevant to how firefighters use their PPE and that result in the use of perfluoroalkyl and poly- fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), flame retardants, and other hazardous substances in firefighting per- sonal protective garments and auxiliary firefighting PPE,as provided. An act to amend Section 147.4 of the Labor Code,
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