California Governor Gavin Newsom has signed a package of laws restricting how employers can use artificial intelligence in workplace decisions.

The centrepiece is Senate Bill 947, the No Robo Bosses Act of 2026. It bars employers from relying solely on automated decision-making systems to fire or discipline workers. A human reviewer must verify such decisions.

Companies must also disclose when an AI system caused a mass layoff, relocation or termination. Another provision bans workplace surveillance tools in bathrooms.

The law takes effect on July 1, 2027. California has positioned the measures as the first of their kind in the United States.

The signing follows a lawsuit earlier this year in which former Meta employees alleged AI was used to target workers with medical conditions for layoffs — a claim Meta denies.

Labour groups backed the legislation, calling it a landmark protection for workers in the age of AI. Business groups had raised concerns about compliance costs, but the final bills won enough support to pass.