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Three new measures will change how employers use automated employment decisions, handle technology-related layoffs, and monitor employees in 2027.

Artificial intelligence is already part of many workplaces, sometimes in obvious ways and sometimes behind the scenes. California’s latest employment laws make one point clear: employers need to know where automated tools are being used, what those tools are doing, and when human judgment must remain part of the process.

Governor Gavin Newsom signed three measures on September 30, 2026: SB 947, which governs automated disciplinary and termination decisions; SB 951, which adds new Cal/WARN disclosure requirements for technological displacement; and AB 1883, which limits certain AI-powered workplace surveillance. Here’s what employers should know and do now:

SB 947: Keep People in the Decision-Making Process

SB 947 becomes operative July 1, 2027. It limits how employers may use automated decision systems, or ADS, in disciplinary and termination decisions. An employer may not rely solely on an ADS. If the employer primarily relies on the system, a human must review the proposed decision and corroborate the system’s output. Terms like “primarily relies” and “corroborate” will matter a lot here, so it’s worth deciding up front when a tool’s role is big enough to trigger a review and what a reviewer actually needs to look at.

The law also gives an affected employee access to information about the employee’s own data that the ADS primarily used. When communicating a covered decision, the employer must provide written notice explaining the use of the ADS and human review, along with contact information for a person who can provide more information. The easiest approach is to bake the notice into your usual discipline and termination letters, and to keep track of data requests so nothing slips through the cracks.

Practical step: Identify every system that can influence discipline or termination. Decide who will perform an independent review, what supporting evidence will be required, and how the review will be documented. Employers should also prepare a notice template and a process for responding to employee data requests.

SB 951: Add Technology to the Cal/WARN Checklist

SB 951 takes effect January 1, 2027. It changes Cal/WARN notices when a covered mass layoff, relocation, or termination is caused in whole or substantial part by an AI system or other automated technology that replaces employees or automates their positions. In that situation, the notice must identify the technological displacement. Whether technology counts as a “substantial” cause won’t always be clear-cut, so write down how you reached your answer and use the same disclosure in every notice.

Practical step: Bring employment counsel into restructuring discussions early, particularly when automation is part of the business case. Add technological displacement to the reduction-in-force checklist, document whether technology is a substantial cause of the action and make sure the Cal/WARN notice matches that analysis.

AB 1883: Look Closely at Surveillance Features

AB 1883 takes effect January 1, 2027. It prohibits employers from using a workplace-surveillance tool that uses AI to recognize, infer, or predict a person’s emotional state or to collect neural data. The law covers a broad range of tools that collect employee activity, communications, biometrics, behavior, or other workplace data through means other than direct observation. The law includes limited exceptions, and violations may result in civil penalties of up to $500 per violation. Those penalties can add up fast across employees and tools, so don’t assume a feature fits an exception without taking a close look.

Practical step: Don’t limit the review to products labeled as AI. Ask vendors what each tool collects, what conclusions it generates, and whether optional or newly added features analyze emotions, biometrics, or neurological information. Disable or remove any prohibited features.

What Employers Should Do Now

Start with a focused inventory of workplace AI tools. Employers should bring together HR, legal, IT, procurement, employee relations, and operations to:

  • Map current tools. Record the business owner, vendor, data inputs, outputs, and employment purpose of each automated or monitoring system.
  • Flag higher risk uses. Prioritize tools that affect discipline, termination, workforce reductions, employee behavior, biometrics, or monitoring.
  • Build controls. Create human-review, documentation, notice, and employee-request procedures before the applicable 2027 deadlines.
  • Review contracts and updates. Require vendors to disclose relevant functionality and notify the employer when product changes create new features or data uses.
  • Train the right teams. Make sure the people who buy, configure, and use these tools understand the new limits.

Start the inventory now, while there is time to test workflows and address vendor issues before the new requirements apply. Reach out if you have questions about how these laws may affect your business or would like help reviewing your workplace AI practices.

Learn more about Womble’s Employment, Privacy and Cybersecurity, and AI teams.