CA Wage and Hour Law – Update 2026
Instructor
Mark Schwartz
CHOOSE YOUR ACCESS
Webinar details
Everything you'll learn in this session
Webinar Description
Overview
California continues to have some of the most complex and employee-friendly wage and hour laws in the United States. With ongoing legislative updates, court rulings, and enforcement activity, employers must stay informed to remain compliant and avoid costly penalties.
This webinar provides a comprehensive update on California wage and hour laws for 2026. Participants will gain a clear understanding of current requirements, recent changes, and practical steps to ensure compliance across their organization.
In addition to the new laws, we well review all ramifications thereof, and review the following areas of Wage and Hour compliance:
Why You Should Attend
The responsibility to implement and notify employers of many laws lies with the California Dept of Industrial Relations. Employers need to review new laws every year, modify their operations as directed, and review the wider aspects of employment law they effect. So join Mark Schwartz for the 2026 Wage and Hour laws version of this webinar. Learn what assembly bills have affected these areas for 2026:
Workplace Know Your Rights Act :
- Expanded Statute of Limitations and Recovery Period for Equal Pay Act Claims
- Updated Paid Sick Leave Poster
- Senate Bill (SB) 648: Labor Commissioner Authority to Issue Citations for Tip Theft
- SB 809: Independent Contractors and Employee Vehicle Business Expenses.
- AB 406: Expanded Leave Rights for Victims of Violence.
- SB 590: Designated Person for Paid Family Leave.
- SB 464: Pay Data Reporting and Demographic Data
- AB 692: Prohibition of "Stay or Pay" Provisions in Employment Contracts.
- SB 617: Changes to Cal-WARN Notices.
Who Will Benefit?
This webinar is ideal for:
- HR Managers and HR Business Partners
- Payroll and Compensation Professionals
- Compliance and Risk Management Teams
- Business Owners and Executives
- Operations Managers and Supervisors
- Anyone responsible for wage and hour compliance in California
Areas Covered in the Session
- Wage orders: How to determine which of the 17 wages orders applies to your company
- Overtime: CA has daily and weekly overtime and daily and weekly double time. Learn how to determine when it’s straight time, overtime or double time.
- Alternative workweeks: Are your employees eligible to have alternative workweeks and are employers required to offer them?
- Minimum Wage -How do credits for meals and lodging or tips affect the current minimum wage
- Reporting or show up pay: does the employer owe wages to any employee for just showing up to work? Even if there is no work to be performed?
- Split shifts: Is there a monetary requirement to pay the employee extra if they work a split shift?
- Rules for compensating piece workers
- What are the requirements for posters and payday notices?
- What must be included in the employee's pay stub and what must be excluded?
- What notices are required to be given to employees upon hire or if they are laid off or terminated. What if they go on leave of absence?
- How often must employees be paid in CA? Does it apply to all categories of employees?
- What methods are permitted to pay employees? Are there rules for direct deposit? Can employees be paid by payroll debit card?
- What are the rules for paying out the final paycheck if an employee is terminated.
- Are meal and rest periods required or left up to the employer's policies? If required what are the penalties if the employee does not receive his or her meal or rest period
- Recordkeeping requirements include required time card punches
- Mandatory Sick Leave Law.
Meet your speaker
Mark Schwartz
Mark Schwartz is an employment tax specialist and has over 15 years of employment tax experience as an independent consultant and as a payroll tax auditor with the State of California. He has managed an audit caseload of 20 ongoing audits, from small home-based businesses to large multi-national corporations. He is expert at defining regulatory and statutory requirements from local, State and Federal government agencies; and helping the average businessperson understand what that means to their business. He has processed weekly and bi-weekly payroll checks plus tax forms for businesses with hourly as well as exempt workers, multistate operations and a wide variety of benefits.
Mr.Schwartz provides consulting services encompassing payroll processing and payroll tax issues. These include payroll tax minimization, payroll tax compliance reviews, independent contractor studies, use of electronic transfers, deductions, benefits, etc. Mark has represented both clients and the State in front of the State Appeals Board. He understands the complexities of local wage laws, unemployment and disability claims, and other wage and benefit issues affecting your employees.
Mark prides himself on his outstanding customer service skills. He listens attentively to his clientele, helping them bridge the gap between the small business world and Government bureaucracy. He eagerly assists with clients needs and feels that educating clients toward faster, accurate and more complete payroll processes provide the most value.
Mark is a participating member of the American Payroll Association. He earned his BA and MBA in Finance at Santa Clara University. He has held Certified Internal Auditor and Certified Investment and Derivatives Auditor Credentials. Mark is currently pursuing a Certified Payroll Fundamentals Credential with the American Payroll Association.