Employment: rehiring and retention: displaced workers: natural disasters.

Assembly Member Lee's legislation expands California's worker recall requirements to cover employees laid off during any officially declared state of emergency, building upon existing protections established for COVID-19-related job losses. The measure requires employers in specified industries to offer available positions to qualified former employees who lost their jobs due to emergency conditions since January 1, 2025.

Under the bill's provisions, employers must notify laid-off workers of job openings within five business days and provide at least five days for workers to accept or decline offers. The legislation creates a presumption that layoffs occurring during a declared emergency are related to that emergency unless employers can demonstrate otherwise. Covered industries include hotels, private clubs, event centers, airports, and building services for commercial properties.

The Division of Labor Standards Enforcement would oversee implementation through 2027, with authority to investigate violations and issue penalties of $100 per affected employee plus $500 per day until violations are corrected. The measure preserves existing record-keeping requirements for employers, including maintaining documentation of layoff notices and recall offers for three years. Local governments retain the ability to enact stronger worker protection standards through their own ordinances.