California Limits AI Decisions About Workers

Gov. Gavin Newsom approved several measures aimed at workplace uses of artificial intelligence on the final day of his last scheduled legislative session. The laws restrict how AI can influence dismissals and discipline, and include protections involving patient care. They also address automated systems that evaluate or monitor employees.

The firing measure changed during the legislative process. It no longer covers contractors, and workers lost an appeals process plus the ability to sue to force compliance. Labor groups had pressed Newsom to approve eight AI bills, but he enacted only part of that package. The California Nurses Association said he rejected a proposal protecting health care workers who refuse to follow an AI recommendation. Another measure that would have barred replacing mental health workers with AI was among those Newsom did not mention.

For Simi Valley residents who work in California, the changes could shape how employers use algorithms when judging performance, setting pay or making employment decisions. The issue also reaches parents and other households as California continues adopting technology-related rules, including more than a dozen measures focused on protecting children. Labor leaders plan to continue seeking limits on workplace surveillance, safeguards for human judgment in health care and rules addressing workers who may be required to train systems that replace them.