California employers will face a significantly more complex leave and accommodation landscape beginning on January 1, 2026. The Legislature has enacted new laws that broaden employee rights to take protected time off, expand the definition of permissible “safe time,” and strengthen enforcement through the Civil Rights Department (CRD). While the California Family Rights Act (CFRA) itself remains largely unchanged, new statutes such as Assembly Bill 406 and additional FEHA-based protections will require employers to update policies, train managers, and rethink how overlapping leave laws interact.
Expanded Paid Sick and “Safe Time” Under AB 406
The most consequential new statute is AB 406, which substantially amends the Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act (HWHFA). Since 2015, that law has required employers to provide paid sick leave for an employee’s own illness, preventive care, or the care of a family member. The 2026 amendments incorporate new “safe time” provisions drawn from Government Code section 12945.8, expanding the range of circumstances under which employees may use accrued time off.
Starting on January 1, 2026, employees who are victims of certain crimes, or who have family members who are victims, will be entitled to take protected leave to participate in a broader array of activities connected to the criminal process. These include attending court proceedings such as post-arrest hearings, plea agreements, sentencing, or post-conviction matters. Employees also may take leave to meet with law enforcement, prosecutors, or victim services providers, seek or renew restraining orders, or access services from domestic violence shelters, sexual assault programs, or other advocacy organizations.
The new law reflects the Legislature’s view that recovery from violence and victimization is not confined to medical treatment and that workers should not be forced to choose between safety and job security.
New CRD Notice and Survivor Protections
The CRD has responded to recent statutory changes with new regulatory and educational materials, including a mandatory notice entitled, Survivors of Violence and Family Members of Victims – Right to Leave and Accommodations. Employers will be required to post and distribute this notice beginning in 2026. The agency’s accompanying Frequently Asked Questions clarify that employees may use any accrued leave — including vacation, paid time off, or sick leave — for the newly covered purposes. They also emphasize that employers must treat all information related to an employee’s status as a victim, or the reasons for their leave, as strictly confidential except where disclosure is required by law.
Equally important, enforcement of these provisions has shifted from a primarily Labor Code-based scheme to one grounded in the Fair Employment and Housing Act. That shift gives the CRD expanded investigation authority and increases the risk of agency enforcement actions. Employers should anticipate more frequent investigations, broader remedial orders, and potentially greater exposure to civil litigation.
CFRA Coordination: Overlapping Rights and Greater Complexity
Although the CFRA’s substantive provisions are not changing in 2026, the interaction between CFRA, HWHFA, and the expanded safe-time protections will make leave administration more complicated. The CFRA still guarantees up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave for an employee’s own serious health condition, to care for certain family members (including a “designated person”), to bond with a new child, or for qualifying military exigencies. But more absences will now qualify for protection under multiple statutes simultaneously.
Consider, for example, an employee who attends a criminal sentencing for a family member who was the victim of violence. That employee also might qualify for CFRA leave if the family member has a serious health condition. Likewise, paid sick leave under HWHFA could run concurrently with a reasonable accommodation under FEHA if the absence is related to disability or safety planning. These overlapping protections will require careful analysis, precise designation, and clear communication with employees to avoid inadvertent violations.
Designated Person Rules and Future Changes
The concept of a “designated person” — someone related by blood or whose association with the employee is the equivalent of a family relationship — remains unchanged for 2026. Employers still may limit employees to one designated person per 12-month period under the CFRA. However, employers should be aware of an additional development on the horizon.
Beginning on July 1, 2028, California’s Paid Family Leave program will adopt a similar designated person provision. While that change does not immediately affect leave administration, it will require employers to coordinate benefits and entitlements across multiple programs in future years.
Compliance Challenges and Enforcement Risks
The expanded statutory framework for leaves and accommodations creates significant new compliance challenges. Employers must strengthen intake procedures to ensure they correctly identify all applicable leave laws at the outset of a request. Multi-state employers, in particular, must harmonize local paid sick leave ordinances with California’s expanded protections. Recordkeeping systems will likely need to be updated to capture new categories of leave and to ensure accurate tracking and reporting.
Confidentiality requirements also create legal risk. Victim-related leave requests often involve sensitive personal information, and mishandling that information can expose an employer to liability under FEHA’s anti-retaliation and anti-interference provisions. Training managers and frontline supervisors on these confidentiality obligations is essential.
The Road Ahead for California Employers
California has long been a national leader in expanding employee leave and accommodation rights, and the changes deepen that commitment in 2026. By expanding the circumstances under which employees can use paid leave, strengthening survivor protections, and shifting enforcement to a more aggressive FEHA-based framework, lawmakers are signaling that workplace policies must evolve to meet employees’ real-world needs.
The best preparation is preparation. Employers should begin by revising their policies and handbooks to reflect the expanded HWHFA uses and the additional rights under Government Code section 12945.8. They should post and distribute the new CRD notice, update leave request forms and designation letters, and train managers to identify and respond appropriately to requests for leave related to violence or victimization. Finally, organizations should evaluate their HR information systems to ensure they can accurately track and categorize the new forms of leave.
These changes will undoubtedly make compliance more challenging, but they also offer employers an opportunity to build trust and resilience in their workplaces. By preparing now, employers can reduce legal risk, support employees in crisis, and ensure that their organizations are ready to meet California’s evolving legal landscape.
Jennifer Shaw is the founder of Shaw Law Group, PC, a Sacramento-based employment law firm representing employers in advice, training, and workplace investigations. She writes regularly on developments in California labor and employment law and is a frequent speaker at HR and legal conferences statewide.