On April 14, 2023, the California Civil Rights Division (“CRD”) updated its frequently asked questions page regarding SB 1162, which sets forth California’s new pay data reporting requirements. The revised April 14th guidance provides an “enforcement deferral period,” from May 10 to July 10, 2023, for filing Labor Contractor Employee Reports.
By now, California employers of 100 or more employees are familiar with the January 1, 2023, updates to the Equal Pay Act as amended by Senate Bill No. 1162 (“SB 1162”) which, in part, imposed detailed reporting requirements upon employers. The CRD published an FAQ section to guide employers through these stringent requirements.
Among other key considerations, the CRD FAQ section addresses the requirement that a private employer with 100 or more workers hired through labor contractors in the prior calendar year must file a “Labor Contractor Employee Report” with the CRD. The Labor Contractor Employee Report requires the employer’s labor contractors to provide necessary data and information to the employer submitting the report, as well as requiring the employer to identify their labor contractors. The Labor Contractor Employee reporting requirements supplement the additional “Payroll Employee Report” requirements, which cover an employer’s payroll employees.
Initially upon the rollout of its FAQs, the CRD provided that the deadline for filing pay data reports with its office is the second Wednesday of May each year. For pay data reports covering Reporting Year 2022, the filing deadline is May 10, 2023.
However, the CRD’s revised guidance announced that the CRD is accepting “enforcement deferral requests” from employers for their Labor Contractor Employee Reports until May 10, 2023. If granted, CRD will defer—through July 10, 2023—an order of compliance for the employer to file its Labor Contractor Employee Report. Requests will only be considered by employers registered in pay data reporting portal, and CRD will only accept requests through the California Pay Data Reporting portal. Employers should know that enforcement deferral requests are not available for employee pay data reports (Payroll Employee Reports).
Employers should either file their Labor Contractor Reports or their Deferral Requests by May 10, 2023. If the CRD has not received a required report by this deadline, it may seek a court order requiring the employer’s compliance with SB 1162. Further, CRD is entitled to recover the costs associated with seeking the order for compliance, and the court may even assess a civil penalty against the employer and/or a labor contractor that failed to timely provide pay data to the employer.
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