Worker rights: an AI can't fire you alone in California, and what changed October 1

I work in HR for a living, so I read this category closest. The usual note up front: I say clearly when something is in effect and when it is not. Most of California's new laws do not start until 2027, one federal change is still under White House review, and a strike is an active dispute, not a settled outcome. This is general information, not legal advice, and it is not a compliance determination for anyone's workplace.

California: a human has to check an AI's decision to fire you

Governor Newsom had until September 30 to act on the employment bills passed this session, and he signed most of them. The headline is SB 947, the No Robo Bosses Act. If an employer disciplines or fires someone primarily based on an automated decision system, a person now has to confirm the decision using the underlying data or other supporting information. If the output cannot be confirmed, the employer cannot use it. Workers get a plain-language written notice afterward and can request up to 12 months of their own data. It takes effect July 1, 2027, and it is enforced by the Labor Commissioner and public prosecutors with a $500 penalty per violation. The final version dropped a standalone right for workers to sue (Source).

Three more technology bills were signed the same day, all effective January 1, 2027:

• SB 951: layoff notices under California's WARN Act must describe the jobs displaced and the kind of technology involved when AI or automation drives the cuts. The 60-day notice period does not change.
• AB 1883: bans workplace tools that read your emotional state or collect neural data.
• AB 1331: bans employee monitoring in workplace bathrooms.

Other signed bills worth knowing (Source):

• SB 1149, bereavement leave: at employers with five or more people, you can take bereavement leave for a "designated person," someone whose relationship with you is the equivalent of family. Employers may limit it to one designated person per 12 months. Effective January 1, 2027.
• AB 2495, immigration retaliation: retaliation based on a person's perceived immigration status is now covered, whatever their actual status, with liability up to $10,000 per violation. Effective January 1, 2027.
• AB 1697, stay-or-pay contracts: this pushed back last year's ban on contracts that make you repay training or bonus money if you quit early. That ban now starts January 1, 2027, with new exemptions for some grant-funded programs and advanced PTO.
• AB 2646: a $19.75 minimum wage for certain agricultural workers, and SB 1237, penalties of up to $1,000 per employee for employers that repeatedly fail to file pay data.

What he vetoed: AB 1940, which would have added menopause to the definition of sex under the state's anti-discrimination law. It is the second time he has rejected the idea, saying existing law already covers it and the change would invite litigation. He also vetoed AI bills aimed at health care and public workers, including AB 2575, which would have let a direct-care worker override an AI clinical recommendation, and AB 2656, which would have required notice when AI performs a public employee's work (Source).

From the HR side, the No Robo Bosses Act is the one to plan for now, even with a 2027 start. Plenty of workplaces already use scheduling, productivity or attendance software that feeds discipline. The question to ask is simple: if a tool flagged someone, who looked at the actual data before anything happened to them?

What took effect October 1

Connecticut had the biggest October list (Source):

• Pay transparency: internal and public job postings must include a good-faith wage or wage range and a general description of benefits.
• Stay-or-pay: the state's ban on repayment agreements now covers employers of every size. Businesses with fewer than 26 employees used to be exempt.
• Lactation breaks: nursing employees get reasonable break time in addition to their scheduled breaks.
• Security screening: time spent in a screening your employer requires now counts as hours worked, which means it is paid time.
• Cannabis workers: tips can no longer count toward minimum wage.
• Disability notice: employees get written notice of their federal right to accommodations, and current employees must receive it by January 29, 2027.
• Electronic monitoring: monitoring notices must list the locations that may be monitored and be posted there.

Washington, DC went the other way. Its Universal Paid Leave program cut the maximum weekly benefit from $1,190 to $1,100, medical leave from 12 weeks to 10, and leave to care for a sick relative from 12 weeks to 6. Parental leave stays at 12 weeks.

Elsewhere, also October 1 unless noted:

• Maryland: employers generally cannot punish workers who skip mandatory meetings about religious or political matters, with penalties up to $10,000 for a first violation. A required poster is due by November 1.
• Washington State: employers must give workers written notice within five days of a federal I-9 inspection notice, and again within five days of the results.
• South Carolina: employers must allow at least 30 days a year of leave for Civil Air Patrol emergency response, which private employers may leave unpaid.
• Alabama: new agreements cannot stop someone from disclosing sexual abuse.
• Rhode Island: employers with more than 100 eligible employees must offer the state's RISavers retirement program by October 15.

The EEOC moved to drop its background check guidance

This is not final. On October 6 the EEOC sent the White House a final action that would rescind its 2012 guidance on arrest and conviction records, and Bloomberg Government reported it October 8 (Source). That guidance told employers that a blanket "no criminal record" policy could violate federal law if it fell harder on some groups and was not tied to the job. It is why many employers look at what the offense was, how long ago it happened, and whether it relates to the role.

Two things do not change. Title VII itself is the same law it was last week. And many states and cities have their own fair chance or "ban the box" rules that still apply no matter what the EEOC does (Source). If you have a record and are job hunting, check your state's rules, because they may protect you more than federal guidance ever did.

Also from the EEOC, on October 1 it filed a disability lawsuit against Walmart on behalf of a deaf stocker who asked for a sign language interpreter at daily staff meetings, and another against a care facility that it says stopped an accommodation it had provided for nearly seven years (Source). These are allegations in lawsuits and have not been proven in court.

Chicago hotel workers walked out during marathon weekend

Union hotel workers in downtown Chicago struck on October 12 as runners checked in for the marathon. The contract dispute covers upwards of 7,000 workers at 46 hotels in the Chicago area. The union says staffing at key downtown hotels never recovered from pandemic-era cuts, and 85 percent of workers voted in September to authorize strikes. Hyatt's head of labor relations said the company believes it has offered competitive wages and benefits and wants a fair contract. Both sides say talks will continue (Source).

The staffing point is the one I would watch. Housekeeping workloads, how many rooms one person cleans in a shift, are a quiet driver of injuries in this industry, and it is a recurring issue in hotel contracts.

If any of this affects you

• In Connecticut and job hunting? A posting without a pay range is now out of line with state law. You can ask the employer for the range.
• Asked to sign a stay-or-pay agreement? Read it carefully, and in Connecticut, know the ban now covers small employers too.
• In California and disciplined by software? The new rights start in July 2027. Until then, write down what happened and ask what data the decision was based on.
• Have a record? Look up your state's fair chance hiring rules. They are not affected by the EEOC's move.
• On DC paid leave? Recheck how many weeks you have before planning medical or family leave.

If you want a plain-language guide to your pay, benefits and rights at work, that is what I built Plantilla for, in English, Spanish and eight more languages. You can see everything else the studio builds at jcmobileappstudio.com/apps.

Verified October 12, 2026, against the sources linked above. Effective dates come from bill text summaries by employment law firms and the state agencies they cite. Laws change and courts can block them, so check your state labor department before relying on any of this for a decision. General information, not legal advice.