AI layoffs in California: what the WARN Act requires

Who has to give notice

California has its own WARN Act, separate from the federal one. It covers a "covered establishment," which is any site that employs, or has employed in the past 12 months, 75 or more people. The federal law starts at 100 employees.

Three events require notice:

• A mass layoff: 50 or more employees laid off at the site during any 30 day period.
• A termination: the site stops all or most of its operations.
• A relocation: all or most of the operations move 100 miles or more away.

Unlike the federal law, California does not require that the layoff hit a minimum percentage of the workforce.

Who gets the notice

The notice goes out 60 days before the layoff. It goes to each affected employee, the Employment Development Department, the local workforce development board, and the chief elected official of each city and county where the layoff happens.

What the notice must say in 2026

Since January 1, 2026, a California notice must include more than the federal form. Under SB 617 it must also say whether the employer will coordinate services, such as rapid response orientation, through the local workforce development board or another group. It must give the board's phone number and email, an employer contact phone number and email, and information about CalFresh food assistance. If the employer will coordinate services, it must arrange them within 30 days after it sends the notice.

New in 2027: layoffs caused by AI

Governor Newsom signed SB 951 on September 30, 2026. It applies starting January 1, 2027. If a mass layoff, relocation, or termination is caused in whole or in substantial part by AI or other automated technology, the notice must also include:

• The number of layoffs that came from replacing or automating jobs with AI or other technology, with the job classifications and work locations.
• The job functions those workers did that will now be automated.
• The category or type of AI system or other technology that caused the displacement.
• The words "This notice is for a technology displacement" at the top.

SB 951 adds a definition of "artificial intelligence" to the WARN Act. It does not define "in substantial part" or "other automated technology." It also does not create a new reason to give notice. A company that replaces a few jobs with AI owes no WARN notice unless the cuts already meet one of the three events above.

If a layoff has several causes, write down the business reasons for each cut when you make the decision. That record will matter if anyone later asks whether AI was a substantial part of the reason.

What happens without proper notice

An employer that skips the notice can owe each affected worker back pay and benefits for each day of the violation, up to 60 days. It can also owe a civil penalty of up to $500 for each day of the violation. The civil penalty does not apply if the employer pays each affected worker what it owes within three weeks after it orders the layoff.

Final pay on layoff day

A laid off worker is owed all earned wages, including unused vacation, on the last day. California treats a layoff as a discharge, so the pay is due immediately. Late final pay can add a penalty of one day's wages for each day it is late, up to 30 days. Severance offered with a layoff has its own rules; see severance agreements in California.