Special Report:California Limits Automated Discipline and Termination: What SB 947 Requires and What Remains Unclear
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California has enacted Senate Bill 947, a law that stops employers from letting software make discipline and termination decisions on its own. The governor signed it on Sept. 30, 2026, and its requirements become operative on July 1, 2027. For employers managing workplace injuries, the law adds another consideration when attendance, productivity or other automated tools contribute to decisions affecting injured employees. What The Law Requires An employer may not rely solely on an automated decision system to discipline or fire an employee. If the employer primarily relies on the system’s output, a person must corroborate the decision using the data collected or used to produce that output, or other relevant supporting information. The statute expressly permits supervisory or managerial evaluations, personnel files, employee work product, peer reviews and witness interviews, which may include relevant online customer reviews. Output that cannot be corroborated, or that the reviewer...