Assembly Labor Committee advances package of worker‑protection, CalOSHA and AI bills

The Assembly Labor and Employment Committee advanced a broad slate of labor bills at a subcommittee hearing that included detailed testimony from unions, advocates, workers and industry representatives.

The committee voted to move measures that would expand protections against immigration‑related employer coercion (AB 24 95), fund studies into behavioral‑health pay disparities (AB 25 11), make a displaced oil‑and‑gas worker pilot permanent (AB 21 57), study Cal/OSHA inspector vacancies and recruitment (AB 24 88), and create or refine multiple rules tied to artificial intelligence and worker data (AB 25 45, AB 20 27, AB 25 75 and AB 26 53). Several bills passed the subcommittee and were referred to policy and appropriations committees for further consideration.

Why it matters: Committee members and witnesses framed the package as an attempt to protect workers at a time of technological change and industry consolidation. Supporters argued the bills close enforcement gaps, protect vulnerable workers from coercion and promote transparency where private sector practices may harm labor standards. Opponents, largely from employer groups and some public‑sector associations, said several proposals are too broad, raise data‑security or procurement implementation challenges, or would impose heavy reporting burdens.

Advocates, enforcement gaps and employer coercion "In this political climate, undocumented workers must take real and significant risks when they step forward to assert their…