California’s pay data reporting for covered California employers is due May 13, 2026.

California mandates that employers with at least 100 employees submit a pay data report to the state Civil Rights Department as part of its efforts to advance fair pay. SB 1162 (2022) expanded the reporting requirement to include employees hired through labor contractors, including farm labor contractors, to require reporting on both “payroll employees” (workers on an employer’s payroll) and “labor contractor employees” (workers not on an employer’s direct payroll who are engaged in the employer’s usual course of business). That amendment also established potential penalties of $100 per employee for employers who fail to comply (or $200 per person for repeat failures).

Legislation passed in 2025 (SB 464, Smallwood-Cuevas, D-Los Angeles) adds three additional reporting criteria for 2026:

• Exemption status (exempt v. non-exempt
• Employment type (full-time, part-time, or intermittent)
• Total annual weeks worked (aggregated by employee group)

Both payroll employers and labor contractors will be required to report these new categories.

The reporting requires annual submissions detailing pay and hours worked for employees in California, or who are a part of a California establishment, categorized by:

• Employee demographic information: race, ethnicity, and sex.
• Pay data: categorized by job category and pay band.
• Hours worked: for each employee withing the reporting year.

The California Civil Rights Department has released preliminary templates for employers and labor contractors to make pay data reports. CRD has also published Frequently Asked Questions. CRD typically opens its payroll data reporting portal in early February.