Legislation Limits AI Use In California Workplace Decisions

New legislation targeting the role of artificial intelligence in workforce management is headed to California Gov. Gavin Newsom. 

Under SB 947, employers operating in California would be prohibited from allowing automated systems to serve as the sole basis for terminating or penalizing employees. Where such technology plays a significant role in disciplinary outcomes, the measure mandates that a human decision-maker independently evaluate the situation before any adverse action takes effect. Workers subject to these processes would also gain the right to be informed about which digital tools contributed to the decision and what personal information factored into the analysis.

SB 947 is essentially a repackaged version of the “No Robo Bosses Act” that ultimately failed to gain executive approval during the 2025 legislative session. This new legislation is restructured to address the concerns that led to Newsom's earlier rejection, and the revised text cleared both chambers of the state legislature last week.

So far, only a few jurisdictions have decided to place guardrails around how companies deploy algorithmic tools to manage their workforces. California's efforts stand out as one of the most comprehensive attempts. The state's legislature also advanced separate measures that would curb employer surveillance of workers' brain activity and emotional responses, as well as mandate advance warning when job eliminations result from the adoption of automated technologies.

These state-level regulatory efforts, however, face growing resistance from Washington. The current federal administration has signaled a broad intent to curtail states' ability to impose their own AI rules, leveraging proposed federal legislation, litigation brought by the Department of Justice, and the prospect of withholding government funds from noncompliant jurisdictions.

Whether Newsom will sign or reject the revised bill remains an open question, but the measure's progress underscores an accelerating tension between state capitals and the federal government over who sets the boundaries for artificial intelligence in the workplace, as well as a growing concern over the expansion of AI into human resources decision-making.