United States: Redundancy/Layoff

California has enacted three new laws governing employer use of artificial intelligence and automated tools in layoffs, workplace monitoring, discipline, and termination. These laws are separate from the California Consumer Privacy Act’s automated decisionmaking technology (ADMT) rules and apply more broadly to employers and public entities that are not covered by the CCPA. CCPA covered employers may need to integrate compliance with ADMT and Risk Assessment requirements (for sensitive personal information processing activities and automated decisionmaking technology).

Starting January 1, 2027, California employers will be required to disclose when a mass layoff is caused by the employer’s use of artificial intelligence (AI) or other automation technology.

For California workplaces, the new laws change the ground rules: one law governs the role automated tools may play in disciplinary and termination decisions, another adds AI-specific content to mass layoff notices, and the third limits AI-enabled employee monitoring. In this update, we explain what each law requires or forbids, how the law will be enforced, and the steps we recommend employers take.

On July 10, 2026, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia granted a joint request by the CFPB and employees represented by its union to pause litigation concerning the CFPB’s proposed 2026...

The California government launched what it describes as the first state tool to monitor and track the impact of artificial intelligence on the workforce.

As HR professionals increasingly use AI tools for new purposes, employment attorneys are warning them to retain a human element when delivering layoff news to employees.

At the recent Employment Law Symposium held by Ward and Smith, three attorneys from the Labor and Employment Law Group plotted a course through the evolving landscape of employment law.

In December 2025, Korea's Ministry of Employment and Labor (MOEL) released draft Interpretive Guidelines following the September 9, 2025 amendment to the Trade Union and Labor Relations Adjustment Act ("Trade Union Act"), effective March 10, 2026.

The year 2025 marked significant growth in the adoption of "mini-WARN" acts — state statutes that expand upon the federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN act).