Special Alert: New Template Wage Theft Prevention Act Notice

Dec 26, 2023

Related Attorneys

  • Katherine M. McCray
  • Michael S. Kalt

Expertise Practice Areas

  • Employment

California employers are surely already aware of the requirement under Labor Code section 2810.5 to provide a so-called “Wage Theft Prevention Act Notice” to all employees at the time of hiring with certain specified information. Starting January 1, 2024, employers will also need to ensure these Notices include the increased minimum Paid Sick Leave allocation (of 5 days or 40 hours), and include information about the existence of a federal or state emergency or disaster declaration applicable to the county or counties where the employee is to be employed that was issued within 30 days before the employee’s first day of employment which may affect their health and safety during employment (as required by AB 636).

California employers are surely already aware of the requirement under Labor Code section 2810.5 to provide a so-called “Wage Theft Prevention Act Notice” to all employees at the time of hiring with certain specified information. Starting January 1, 2024, employers will also need to ensure these Notices include the increased minimum Paid Sick Leave allocation (of 5 days or 40 hours), and include information about the existence of a federal or state emergency or disaster declaration applicable to the county or counties where the employee is to be employed that was issued within 30 days before the employee’s first day of employment which may affect their health and safety during employment (as required by AB 636).

The California Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) has issued a new template Wage Theft Prevention Act Notice that reflects the new Paid Sick Leave requirement and has a section for emergency or disaster declarations. You can access the new template here: NOTICE TO EMPLOYEE (ca.gov). The template indicates that employers must identify applicable emergency or disaster declarations and state how such declarations may affect health or safety.

Unfortunately, the DIR has not yet updated their Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about these notices or provided any other guidance about how employers are to find information about applicable emergency or disaster declarations or how employers are to assess the way in which such declarations may affect health and safety. Employers are encouraged to continue monitoring the DIR’s FAQs specific to these notices to watch for possible updates. The FAQs are available here: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) (ca.gov).

In the meantime, employers may find the following resources helpful. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) maintains a website with declared disasters in California: California | FEMA.gov. The California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services also publishes a list of open state of emergency proclamations: Emergency Proclamations | California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services. It remains to be seen whether the DIR will deem the information included on these two websites as an accurate and/or complete list of all federal or state emergency or disaster declarations that must be included in the Wage Theft Prevention Act Notices, but the websites may provide a reasonable source of information unless and until the DIR provides additional guidance.

If you have questions about how these new requirements will affect your business or need advice about how to implement these new requirements, please contact us.

Wilson Turner Kosmo’s Special Alerts are intended to update our valued clients on significant employment law developments as they occur. This should not be considered legal advice.
© 2025 Wilson Turner Kosmo LLP All rights reserved.