California Labor Law Poster Requirements for Employers

California labor law poster requirements obligate every employer in the state to display a specific set of state and federal workplace notices where employees can read them during the workday, covering wages, safety, discrimination, paid sick leave, workers’ compensation, and more. The list runs longer than most employers expect, and both the content and placement are regulated. Here is what has to go up, where, in what language, and when it needs to be refreshed.

California State Posters Every Employer Must Display

California mandates more workplace notices than most states. The following apply to all employers unless noted.

Minimum Wage Order. California’s minimum wage is $16.90 per hour as of January 1, 2026, and the current poster must be displayed.¹
Industrial Welfare Commission (IWC) Wage Order. Post the IWC wage order that applies to your industry. These cover overtime, meal and rest breaks, and reporting time pay. Labor Code Section 1183 requires the order to be kept in a conspicuous location frequented by employees.²
Paid Sick Leave. Labor Code Section 247 requires a notice explaining how employees accrue, request, and use paid sick days.³
Payday Notice. Labor Code Section 207 requires a posted notice specifying regular paydays and the time and place of payment. The employer fills in the specifics.⁴
Whistleblower Protections. Labor Code Section 1102.8 requires a prominently displayed notice in lettering larger than 14-point type, listing employee rights and the Attorney General’s whistleblower hotline.⁵
Discrimination and Harassment. Government Code Section 12950 requires a Civil Rights Department poster covering workplace discrimination, sexual harassment, and transgender rights.⁶
Workers’ Compensation Insurance. Labor Code Section 3550 requires a notice identifying the current workers’ compensation carrier or stating that the employer is self-insured. This poster comes from the carrier.⁷
Safety and Health Protection on the Job. California has its own Cal/OSHA safety poster under Labor Code Section 6328, separate from the federal OSHA notice.⁸
California Workplace — Know Your Rights. Starting in 2026, employers must provide employees a workplace rights notice on or before February 1 each year.⁷
Cal/OSHA Form 300A. This annual summary of workplace injuries and illnesses must be posted during the entire month of February.⁷

Federal Posters That Layer On Top

Federal law adds its own posting requirements. Some apply to every employer; others trigger at specific headcounts.

Fair Labor Standards Act. Every employer with FLSA-covered workers must post a notice on federal minimum wage, overtime, and child labor protections, under 29 CFR Part 516.⁹
Family and Medical Leave Act. Private employers with 50 or more employees in 20 or more workweeks must post the FMLA notice. Public agencies and schools must post it regardless of size.¹⁰
Job Safety and Health: It’s the Law. The federal OSHA poster informs workers of their rights to a safe workplace.¹¹
Know Your Rights: Workplace Discrimination Is Illegal. Employers covered by federal anti-discrimination laws must post the EEOC notice summarizing protections based on race, sex, age, disability, religion, national origin, and genetic information.¹²
Your Rights Under USERRA. All employers must notify employees of their rights under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act.¹³
Employee Polygraph Protection Act. Every employer subject to the EPPA must post the notice about restrictions on lie detector tests where employees and applicants can see it.¹⁴

Federal contractors have extra posting duties, including notices tied to the National Labor Relations Act, Davis-Bacon construction contracts over $2,000, and Executive Order 13496 on organizing rights. Noncompliance can lead to contract suspension or debarment.¹⁵

Language Requirements

Posting in English alone is often not enough. The California minimum wage poster must appear in both English and Spanish.⁸ The state discrimination and harassment poster has a stricter rule: if 10 percent or more of the workforce at any facility speaks a language other than English as their primary language, the notice must also be posted in that language.¹⁶

Most federal DOL posters are only required in English. The FMLA poster is an exception; it must be provided in a language employees can understand when a significant portion of the workforce is not literate in English.¹⁷ The DOL offers free downloads in Spanish, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, and other languages.¹⁸

Where and How to Display Them

The DIR requires posters be displayed “in an area frequented by employees where it may be easily read during the workday.”⁸ Break rooms, lunch areas, and walls near time clocks all work. The EEOC poster and the state discrimination notice must be visible to both employees and job applicants, so a hiring office or lobby copy is needed.¹⁶

Two posters carry specific physical standards. The California whistleblower notice must use lettering larger than 14-point type.⁵ A reproduced or printed federal OSHA poster must be at least 8½ by 14 inches in 10-point type or larger.¹⁷

Posters tucked behind a locked office door, in a storage room, or in an unused hallway do not meet the conspicuous-placement standard. Employers with multiple worksites need a complete set at each location. Posters that require employer-specific details, like the payday notice and the workers’ compensation carrier notice, do not satisfy the requirement if posted blank.¹⁹

Remote Workers and Electronic Delivery

California Labor Code Section 1207, enacted through Senate Bill 657, allows employers to email required workplace postings to employees as attachments, which is the primary way to reach telecommuters.²⁰

Emailing does not replace physical posting at any brick-and-mortar worksite. The electronic option supplements it.²¹ An internal portal or intranet works if all remote workers have access and know where to find the posters. For employers who recruit remotely and never meet applicants in person, the DOL recommends a prominent notice on the job-posting website stating that applicants have federal employment rights and linking to the required posters. That still does not replace physical posting at the employer’s premises.¹⁷

When to Update Your Posters

Posting the right notices once and forgetting them is a common compliance mistake. Replace or re-check posters when any of the following happens:

Minimum wage change. California’s rate adjusts every January 1, and the poster must show the current figure.
New legislation. New requirements, like the Know Your Rights annual notice starting in 2026, must be in place by their effective date.
Revised poster content. Agencies sometimes update text when the law hasn’t changed. Older versions of some posters remain acceptable; the 2019 federal OSHA poster and the 2013 FMLA version both still satisfy the requirement.²²
Business changes. Crossing 50 employees triggers the FMLA posting. Switching workers’ compensation carriers means replacing that notice with one from the new carrier.
February Form 300A. The Cal/OSHA injury and illness summary goes up every February for the prior year.⁷

Reviewing the full board at the start of each calendar year, when the minimum wage change hits, is a practical way to stay current.

Where to Get Posters for Free

Every required poster is available free from the issuing government agency. The California Department of Industrial Relations maintains a page listing all state-mandated postings with direct download links.⁷ Federal posters come from the U.S. Department of Labor’s poster page, which also offers a free “elaws Poster Advisor” that walks employers through the notices they need based on business type and size.²²

Commercial poster services sell all-in-one laminated posters and annual update subscriptions, typically $55 to $70 per year. These are optional. Downloaded official versions meet every legal obligation.⁸

Penalties for Missing or Outdated Posters

Penalties vary by statute and add up when multiple notices are missing. On the federal side, failing to post the EEOC’s Know Your Rights poster carries a penalty of $680 per violation, adjusted annually for inflation.¹² OSHA can cite employers during inspections, and the DOL’s Wage and Hour Division handles FLSA and FMLA poster violations.

California penalties are enforced by the Labor Commissioner’s Office and can be assessed per poster and per location, so a single inspection can produce multiple violations. The exact amount depends on the statute involved and whether the employer has prior violations.

Beyond fines, missing posters weaken an employer’s position in disputes. If an employee claims they were never informed about paid sick leave, overtime, or anti-retaliation protections, the absence of the required notice undermines any defense that the worker already knew their rights. Administrative law judges and courts take note when the most basic compliance step was skipped.

1
Department of Industrial Relations. Minimum Wage
2
California Legislative Information. California Code, Labor Code LAB 1183 – General Provisions
3
California Legislative Information. California Code Labor Code 247 – Paid Sick Days
4
California Legislative Information. California Code Labor Code 207 – Payment of Wages
5
California Legislative Information. California Code Labor Code 1102.8 – Whistleblower Rights and Responsibilities
6
California Legislative Information. California Code, Government Code GOV 12950 – Harassment or Discrimination
7
Department of Industrial Relations. Required Posters and Notices
8
Department of Industrial Relations. Workplace Postings
9
eCFR. 29 CFR Part 516 – Records to Be Kept by Employers
10
U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet 28D – Employer Notification Requirements Under the Family and Medical Leave Act
11
Occupational Safety and Health Administration. OSHA Cares Job Safety and Health Workplace Poster
12
U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Know Your Rights – Workplace Discrimination is Illegal Poster
13
U.S. Department of Labor. Your Rights Under USERRA Poster
14
U.S. Department of Labor. Employee Polygraph Protection Act Poster
15
National Labor Relations Board. Employee Rights Notice Posting
16
California Civil Rights Department. California Law Prohibits Workplace Discrimination and Harassment
17
U.S. Department of Labor. Posters – Frequently Asked Questions
18
U.S. Department of Labor. Workplace Posters
19
Department of Industrial Relations. California Labor Code Payday Notice
20
California Legislative Information. California Code, Labor Code LAB 1207 – Employment Electronic Documents
21
California Legislative Information. California Code Labor Code 1207 – Employment Electronic Documents
22
U.S. Department of Labor. Workplace Posters