Implement “Know Your Rights” Notice By February 1

A new California law requires employers to provide all California-based employees a new notice notifying employees of their workplace rights, including when interacting with law enforcement and immigration agents in the workplace. The California Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) published a sample “Workplace Know Your Rights Act” notice

pursuant to Senate Bill 294, which is now available in English, Spanish and seven other languages.

You can now find the sample notice here: SB294 Know Your Right Notice. This provides employers with a standardized publication to satisfy the statutory notice obligations imposed by SB 294.

As a reminder, California employers are required to provide this written notice no later than February 1, 2026, and annually thereafter. Additionally, all new hires must receive the notice at the time of hire. Employers must also retain documentation demonstrating compliance of this notice requirement for a minimum of three years.

The law requires these notices to include information regarding:

• The right to receive notice of an I‑9 inspection conducted by immigration agencies;

• Protections against unfair immigration‑related practices;

• Employees’ constitutional rights when interacting with law enforcement in the workplace;

• Labor organizing rights;

• Workers’ compensation rights;

• A list of government agencies authorized to enforce the rights described in thenotice; and

• A description of new legal developments pertaining to laws enforced by the LWDA that the Labor Commissioner deems material and necessary.

Employers are required to provide a stand-alone written notice to each current employee in a manner the employer normally uses to communicate employment-related information, including personal service, email, or text message, if it can reasonably be anticipated to be received by the employee within one business day of sending. The notice should also be

communicated in the language the employer normally uses to communicate employment- related information to the employee and which the employee understands.

In addition to the notice requirement, by March 30, 2026, employers must provide employees with the opportunity to designate emergency contacts and to indicate whether those contacts should be notified in the event the employee is arrested or detained at their worksite or during work hours.

If you have questions about SB 294 compliance, implementation strategies, or how this new requirement may intersect with your existing employment policies, please contact the attorneys at Cook Brown LLP.