On September 29, 2024, Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law Assembly Bill (AB) 2499, which expands workplace protections for employee victims of crimes or abuse. The new law takes effect January 1, 2025.
New Terminology and Enforcement
California currently prohibits employers from discharging or discriminating against employees who are victims of “crime or abuse” or need time off for related purposes. It also requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations and paid sick leave to employee victims of “domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking.” These laws are enforced by the Department of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE), through the Labor Commissioner.
AB 2499 recasts existing law as unlawful employment practices within under the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), to be enforced by the Civil Rights Department (CRD). It replaces the terms “crime or abuse” and “domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking” with the broader term “qualifying acts of violence” (QAV), which applies regardless of an arrest, prosecution or conviction. QAV is defined as:
- domestic violence;
- sexual assault;
- stalking; or
- any act, conduct, or pattern of conduct that includes (i) bodily injury or death to another; (ii) brandishing, exhibiting, or drawing a firearm or other dangerous weapon; or (iii) a perceived or actual threat to use form against another to cause physical injury or death
The new law protects not only employee victims, but also their family members. The term “family member” follows the FEHA definition, which includes an employee’s “child, parent, grandparent, grandchild, sibling, spouse, or domestic partner… or designated person.”
No Discrimination or Retaliation
AB 2499 prohibits employers of any size from discriminating or retaliating against victims engaging in the legal process, including taking time off to: (1) serve on an inquest jury or trial jury, (2) appear in court pursuant to a subpoena or other court order, or (3) obtain or attempt to obtain any relief. “Relief” includes, but is not limited to, a temporary restraining order, restraining order, or other injunctive relief, to help ensure the health, safety, or welfare of the victim or their child. Employers are also prohibited from discriminating or retaliating against employees because of their or their family member’s status as a victim of a QAV.
For employers with 25 or more employees covered by the California Family Rights Act (CFRA), AB 2499 creates additional protections, listed here.
Reasonable Accommodations
The new law expands the eligibility for reasonable accommodations to include an employee who is a victim or whose family member is a victim of a QAV. Upon request and receipt of advance notice, employers must provide a reasonable accommodation to an employee with a QAV to ensure their safety at work. To be entitled to a reasonable accommodation, the employee must disclose their or their family member’s status as a victim. Employers must engage in a timely, good faith, interactive process to determine effective reasonable accommodations, and may request certification for the need for reasonable accommodation. Reasonable accommodations may include the implementation of safety measures, including a transfer, reassignment, modified schedule or changed work telephone, permission to carry telephone at work, changed workstation, and installed lock, among other accommodations.
Employees may use paid sick leave for qualifying leaves. Finally, employers may limit the total leave taken to 12 weeks for employee victims, and 10 days, depending on the circumstances for the leave for family member victims. The leave runs concurrently with leave taken under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and the California Family Rights Act (CFRA).
New Notice Requirements
Employers must provide written notice to employees of their rights under the new law, at the time of hire, to all employees annually, and any time an employee informs an employer that the employee or the employee’s family member is a victim. By January 1, 2025, the California Civil Rights Department (CRD) must publish a form notice that employers may use to comply with the notice requirement.
Looking Ahead
Employers should update existing handbooks and workplace policies regarding leave and accommodations for crime victims in light of the changes brought forth by AB 2499.
Duggan McHugh attorneys are available to assist with AB 2499 compliance and defend against litigation.