California bans AI-only firings as Newsom signs No Robo Bosses Act

California Governor Gavin Newsom on Wednesday signed Senate Bill 947, the No Robo Bosses Act, making California the first US state to ban employers from using automated decision-making systems as the sole or primary basis for firing or disciplining workers.

Under the law, reported by Bloomberg Law, businesses may not base discipline decisions solely on AI or algorithmic tools. Where AI is primarily relied upon, a human reviewer must corroborate the decision using additional information such as manager evaluations, peer reviews or personnel files, and affected workers must receive written notice describing the AI data used, along with a human point of contact. The provisions take effect on 1 July 2027.

“No worker should ever be fired or disciplined by a machine, AI or not,” said the bill’s author, state Senator Jerry McNerney. “AI must remain a tool controlled by humans, not the other way around,” he said in comments carried by Techstrong.ai.

The signing caps a rocky legislative path. Newsom vetoed an earlier version, SB 7, in 2025 over broad pre-notification rules; the revised bill dropped the advance-notice requirement and gig-worker protections, blunting opposition from Uber and Lyft, according to Techstrong.ai and Digest AI.

SB 947 was signed alongside a package of worker-AI measures, including SB 951, which modernises Cal/WARN notices for AI-driven layoffs, AB 1331 barring AI surveillance in workplace bathrooms, AB 1883 restricting emotion-recognition and neural-data surveillance, and AB 1979 keeping licensed clinicians — not AI — as the decision-makers in patient care, the AFL-CIO said.

The law lands as distrust of AI grows: a July Gallup poll found 39% of Americans believe AI does more harm than good, up from 31% in 2025. Meta currently faces a lawsuit alleging AI systems targeted employees on medical or family leave for layoffs, an allegation the company denies, Techstrong.ai reported.