California’s pay data reporting portal opened on Feb. 1.  The deadline for submission of pay data reports for 2025 is May 14.

Since the passage of SB 973 in 2020, California has mandated that employers with at least 100 employees submit a pay data report to the state Civil Rights Department as part of its efforts to advance fair pay. SB 1162 (2022) expanded the reporting requirement to include employees hired through labor contractors, including agricultural farm labor contractors to require reporting on both “payroll employees” (workers on an employer’s payroll) and “labor contractor employees” (workers not on an employer’s direct payroll who are engaged in the employer’s usual course of business). That amendment also established potential penalties of $100 per employee for employers who fail to comply (or $200 per person for repeat failures).

The reporting requires annual submissions detailing pay and hours worked for employees in California, or who are a part of a California establishment, categorized by:

• Employee demographic information: race, ethnicity, and sex;
• Pay data: categorized by job category and pay band;
• Hours worked: for each employee withing the reporting year.

The California Civil Rights Department pay data reporting portal is open for submitting 2024 reports. CRC has also published a handbook for employers with instructions for submitting and certifying annual reports, including Frequently Asked Questions.