What California’s New ‘Workplace Know Your Rights Act’ Means For Injured Workers

California has handed every worker a new kind of safety gear.

Senate Bill 294, “The Workplace Know Your Rights Act”, now requires employers to put your core protections in writing, including what happens if you get hurt on the job and how to access workers’ compensation before a bad day at work becomes a financial disaster.

“We meet too many injured workers who have been on the job for years and never once heard the words ‘workers’ comp.’ from their boss,” said Beatriz Trejo, partner and attorney at the Law Office of Chain | Cohn | Clark, and Certified Legal Specialist in Workers’ Compensation from the State Bar of California Board of Legal Specialization. “This law means they don’t have to guess anymore. Your right to medical care and wage replacement can’t stay a secret your employer keeps in a file cabinet.”

The Workplace Know Your Rights Act, adds new Labor Code sections 1550–1559 and forces every California employer to give workers a stand‑alone written “Know Your Rights” notice, not hidden in a handbook, not buried in fine print. Employers must:

• Provide the notice to all current employees (by Feb. 1, 2026), and then every year after that.
• Give the same notice to all new hires at the time of hire.
• Use a separate document (or a clearly separate electronic notice), not just a link or a page in a handbook.

The Labor Commissioner has already posted a model “California Workplace: Know Your Rights” notice in English and Spanish, with more languages coming. Employers can use this template or an equivalent, but they must cover everything the law requires.

For injured workers, the most important part of the new notice is the workers’ compensation section. SB 294 specifically requires employers to explain that California has a no‑fault workers’ compensation system; that is, you can qualify for benefits even if the accident was partly your fault, as long as it happened because of work. In addition, employers must explain:

• Your right to medical treatment for work‑related injuries and illnesses at no cost to you (subject to the system’s rules).
• Your right to temporary disability benefits (wage replacement) if you cannot work while you recover.
• Your right to permanent disability benefits if you’re left with lasting limitations.
• Your right to death benefits for dependents if a worker dies as a result of a job‑related injury or disease.
• How to report an injury, request a DWC‑1 claim form, and contact the Division of Workers’ Compensation for help.

The model notice from the California Labor Commissioner spells this out in straightforward language: if you get hurt or sick because of your job, you may be entitled to medical care, payments for lost wages, and other benefits, and “your employer is required to provide you with a workers’ compensation claim form within one working day” after learning about your injury.​

For farmworkers, warehouse workers, caregivers, oilfield workers, and others across Kern County — many of whom have never seen a comp form until after they call a lawyer — this written explanation is a major shift.

SB 294’s notice isn’t just about workers’ compensation; it also supports injured workers in ways that often show up in real cases:

• Anti‑retaliation protections: The notice must explain that it’s illegal for an employer to punish you for exercising your rights, including reporting an injury or filing a comp claim.
• Immigration‑related protections: Employers can’t use your immigration status to threaten or silence you when you seek medical care or comp benefits.
• Law‑enforcement and constitutional rights at work: If a serious incident brings law enforcement into the workplace (for example, after a fatal accident), the notice must explain core Fourth and Fifth Amendment rights.
• Emergency contact rights: By March 30, 2026, employers must let workers name an emergency contact who must be notified if the employer learns the worker has been arrested or detained at work, a critical protection when injured workers are blamed for incidents or face overlapping criminal and workplace investigations.

“All of this reinforces the central message: you can assert your rights after an injury without giving up your dignity or your job, and there are legal consequences if your employer tries to make you pay for speaking up,” Trejo said.

If employers don’t comply, they can be hit with up to $500 per employee, per violation for failing to supply the notice. For emergency‑contact violations, the fine is $500 per employee per day, up to $10,000 per employee. Those penalties give workers leverage: if you’re hurt and discover your employer never gave you the notice, that failure can become part of your legal strategy.

In Kern County, Chain | Cohn | Clark regularly sees workers who were told “we don’t have workers’ comp.,” when the law says they must, were pressured to use sick days or vacation instead of filing a claim, or were fired, sent home, or threatened with immigration consequences for reporting an injury.

“This new law doesn’t magically fix all of that, but it arms workers and their families with something crucial: proof,” Trejo said. “When you hold a state‑approved ‘Know Your Rights’ notice that says you’re entitled to medical care and wage replacement if you’re hurt, and your employer does the opposite, it becomes much harder for them to claim ignorance or confusion.”

For attorneys building a case, that notice helps show the employer knew or should have known what the law requires, any lies or intimidation were knowing violations, not misunderstandings, and the worker’s decision to seek legal help was in line with rights the state itself told them they had.

For employees, even before or after you receive your SB 294 notice, there are steps you can take if you’re hurt on the job:

• Report the injury immediately to a supervisor, in writing if possible.
• Ask specifically for a DWC‑1 workers’ comp claim form. If they refuse or stall, write down who you asked and when.
• Get medical treatment and tell the doctor your injury is work‑related.
• Keep a copy of your “Know Your Rights” notice and highlight the workers’ comp section. It may become an important exhibit later.
• If you’re threatened, fired, or discouraged from filing, write down exactly what was said and when.
• Talk to a workers’ compensation attorney as soon as you can, especially if your employer or its insurance company denies or delays your claim.

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If you or someone you know is injured in an accident at the fault of someone else, or injured on the job no matter whose fault it is, contact the attorneys at Chain | Cohn | Clark by calling (661) 323-4000, or fill out a free consultation form, text, or chat with us at chainlaw.com.