New California laws improve whistleblower protections
July 4, 2025
California has enacted two new laws enhancing the State’s protection of “whistleblowers.”
California has long protected employee “whistleblowers” from retaliation, including discipline or discharge or other “adverse employment actions.” Under California law an employee is a “whistleblower” if they:
Disclose information to a government/law enforcement agency, or to a person with authority over the employee or with authority to investigate and correct a violation, and
Have reasonable cause to believe that the information they are disclosing is,
- A violation of a state or federal statute,
- A violation or noncompliance with a local, state or federal rule or regulation, or
- An unsafe working condition(s) or work practices in the employee’s employment or place of employment.
The first of the two new California whistleblower laws that went into effect on January 1, 2025, is AB 2299. This bill requires the California Labor Commissioner to create a model list of employees’ rights under the state’s whistleblower laws and requires all California employers to post the explanation of rights prominently in the workplace. The document is now available on the Labor Commissioner’s website at: https://www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/whistleblowersnotice.pdf.
Before this year, California law protected public-sector employees who reported governmental “fraud, waste, or abuse.” The second of the two new laws, AB 2455, expands “fraud, waste, or abuse” to mean any activity that may be in violation of any local, state, or federal rule relating to corruption, malfeasance, bribery, theft of government property, fraudulent claims, fraud, coercion, conversion, malicious prosecution, misuse or misappropriation of government property, funds, or resources, or willful omission to perform a duty, is economically wasteful, or involves gross misconduct.
The bill also expands the law to apply to whistleblowers reporting violations by public-sector contractors and subcontractors.
