San Francisco Labor Laws 2026: A Complete Guide for HR & Employer Compliance

Accurate as of May 2, 2026. This guide is informational and not legal advice. For specific situations, consult licensed California employment counsel familiar with San Francisco ordinances.

San Francisco does something almost no other U.S. city does: it runs a parallel labor code on top of California state law, and that local code touches nearly every part of the employee lifecycle. Hiring, scheduling, healthcare spending, parental leave, military leave, lactation rooms, criminal-history questions, salary history, predictability pay, and even worker retention after a sale of the business are all governed by separate San Francisco ordinances enforced by the Office of Labor Standards Enforcement (OLSE).

For HR teams, the practical effect is that California compliance is the floor, not the ceiling. A policy that satisfies the state still has to be cross-checked against more than a dozen San Francisco ordinances, each with its own coverage threshold, posting requirement, recordkeeping rule, and penalty schedule. Miss one and you can face administrative penalties, three-times-damages liability, or even the loss of a city business license.

This guide walks through every San Francisco ordinance that affects employers in 2026, what it requires, who it covers, and where it goes further than California state law. If you also need a fully documented case management workflow for the complaints these ordinances generate, see how an employee relations platform handles intake, investigations, and recordkeeping in one system.

The 2026 San Francisco Employment Law Updates HR Teams Should Know First

San Francisco runs most of its annual changes on a July 1 cycle to align with the city fiscal year, with a handful of January 1 health and benefit updates layered on top. Here are the changes employers need to plan for in 2026.

• Minimum wage rises to $19.18 on July 1, 2026. The current rate of $18.67 per hour took effect July 1, 2025 and adjusts again on July 1 every year based on the Bay Area Consumer Price Index.
• HCSO healthcare spending rates increased on January 1, 2026. Large employers must spend $4.11 per hour payable, up from $3.85 in 2025. Medium employers must spend $2.74 per hour payable.
• HCSO managerial exemption threshold rose to $128,861 per year (or $61.95 per hour) for managers, supervisors, and confidential employees as of January 1, 2026.
• Minimum Compensation Ordinance non-profit rate rose to $23.00 per hour on January 1, 2026, while the for-profit MCO rate remains at $21.54 per hour.
• Paid Family Leave wage replacement cap increased to $1,765 per week in 2026, which raises the Paid Parental Leave Ordinance employer top-up obligation accordingly.
• Fair Workweek and Formula Retail predictability pay obligations continue to apply to chain retailers and their security and janitorial subcontractors with 40+ global locations and 20+ San Francisco employees.

The detail behind each of these changes is below, organized by ordinance.

San Francisco Minimum Wage Ordinance

The San Francisco Minimum Wage Ordinance is one of the highest local minimum wages in the country. It applies to every employee who performs at least two hours of work per week within the geographic boundaries of San Francisco, including part-time, temporary, and remote employees physically working in the city.

What is the San Francisco minimum wage in 2026?

The San Francisco minimum wage is $18.67 per hour as of July 1, 2025, and is scheduled to increase to $19.18 per hour on July 1, 2026. The rate adjusts annually each July 1 based on the prior year's Bay Area Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners.

Who is covered by the San Francisco Minimum Wage Ordinance?

Coverage is broad. The ordinance reaches:

• Part-time and temporary employees who perform at least two hours of work per week in San Francisco
• Tipped employees. California prohibits any tip credit, so tipped workers must receive the full minimum wage in cash before tips
• Employees of out-of-city employers when those employees work physically in San Francisco
• Remote employees physically working in San Francisco even if the company has no other San Francisco presence

How does San Francisco enforcement differ from California state enforcement?

California minimum wage violations generally go to the Labor Commissioner. San Francisco minimum wage violations are handled by OLSE, which has the authority to assess back wages, liquidated damages, and administrative penalties separate from any state-level claim. Workers can also file private civil actions, and the same underlying violation can produce overlapping liability under both city and state law.

San Francisco Minimum Compensation Ordinance (MCO)

The Minimum Compensation Ordinance covers most companies and nonprofits that hold service contracts with the City and County of San Francisco, plus tenants at San Francisco International Airport. It sets a wage floor higher than the citywide minimum wage and adds paid time off requirements that the citywide ordinance does not.

Who has to comply with the MCO?

The MCO applies to:

• For-profit contractors with five or more employees that receive $25,000 or more in any fiscal year through a city contract
• Nonprofit contractors with five or more employees that receive $50,000 or more in any fiscal year through a city contract
• Public-entity contractors coterminous with the City and County that hold city contracts
• Tenants and subtenants on Airport property and their subcontractors

What are the 2026 MCO wage rates?

Current rates are $21.54 per hour for for-profit employers and $23.00 per hour for nonprofit employers effective January 1, 2026. The for-profit rate adjusts on July 1 each year, while the nonprofit rate is on a separate scheduled-increase track that ran through January 2026.

What benefits does the MCO require beyond the wage rate?

Covered employers must provide:

• The MCO hourly rate in effect for all hours worked on the qualifying contract
• 12 paid days off per year, or the cash equivalent
• 10 days off per year without pay for personal reasons
• Posting and acknowledgment requirements, including conspicuously displayed OLSE posters and annual signed acknowledgments from each covered employee

San Francisco Health Care Security Ordinance (HCSO)

The HCSO is the centerpiece of San Francisco's parallel labor code. It requires medium and large employers to spend a minimum amount per hour payable on healthcare for their San Francisco employees and to file annual reports with the city. There is no comparable state-level requirement.

Which employers are covered by HCSO?

The HCSO covers:

• Medium employers: 20 to 99 employees worldwide (50 to 99 for nonprofits)
• Large employers: 100 or more employees worldwide
• Employees who work in San Francisco for at least eight hours per week and have been employed for more than 90 calendar days

Small employers with fewer than 20 employees are exempt from the spending requirement but may still be subject to the annual reporting requirement once they grow.

What are the 2026 HCSO expenditure rates?

Effective January 1, 2026, the rates are:

• Large employers: $4.11 per hour payable, up from $3.85 in 2025
• Medium employers: $2.74 per hour payable, up from $2.56 in 2025
• Monthly cap (large): $706.92 per employee per month
• Monthly cap (medium): $471.28 per employee per month

Who counts as an exempt managerial employee under HCSO in 2026?

Starting January 1, 2026, managerial, supervisory, and confidential employees who earn more than $128,861 per year (or $61.95 per hour) are exempt from the HCSO spending requirement. The threshold adjusts annually.

How can employers satisfy HCSO spending obligations?

Employers can meet the requirement by:

• Paying for health insurance premiums for covered employees
• Contributing to Health Reimbursement Accounts (HRAs) or Health Savings Accounts (HSAs)
• Reimbursing medical expenses directly
• Paying into the City Option, which routes funds to either Healthy San Francisco coverage or a Medical Reimbursement Account for the employee

When are HCSO Annual Reporting Forms due?

Covered employers must file the Annual Reporting Form with OLSE by May 1 each year for the prior calendar year. Failure to file can trigger a $500 per-quarter penalty separate from any underlying spending shortfall.

San Francisco Health Care Accountability Ordinance (HCAO)

The HCAO is the city-contractor counterpart to the HCSO. Where the HCSO covers private-sector employers across San Francisco, the HCAO applies to companies that hold service contracts or property leases with the City and County, including SFO and the Port of San Francisco.

Who is covered by the HCAO?

The HCAO applies to:

• City contractors with more than 20 employees and at least $25,000 in annual cumulative business with city departments
• Nonprofit contractors with more than 50 employees and at least $50,000 in annual cumulative business with the city
• Tenants on Airport or Port property regardless of contract value

What does the HCAO require employers to do?

Covered employers must offer covered employees one of the following for every hour worked on a qualifying contract:

• A health plan at no cost to the employee that meets HCAO minimum standards
• An hourly cash payment currently set at $7.50 per hour worked, with a $300 weekly cap
• A direct payment to the San Francisco Department of Public Health on the employee's behalf

Annual signed acknowledgments and a conspicuously posted OLSE notice are required, and contractors are responsible for the HCAO compliance of any subcontractors on the same project.

San Francisco Paid Sick Leave Ordinance (PSLO)

San Francisco was the first U.S. jurisdiction to enact a mandatory paid sick leave law, and the local PSLO continues to operate alongside California's state-level Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act. Employers must comply with whichever standard provides the greater benefit on any given variable.

Who is covered by the PSLO?

The PSLO covers every employee who performs at least 56 hours of work per year in San Francisco, including:

• Part-time, temporary, and seasonal workers
• Remote employees physically working in the city
• Employees of out-of-state employers when work happens in San Francisco

How does paid sick leave accrue under the PSLO?

Employees earn one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked from the first day of employment. Accrual is tracked in one-hour increments, not smaller fractions.

What is the maximum sick leave balance under the PSLO?

Caps depend on employer size:

• Employers with 10 or more employees: 72-hour cap on accrued balance
• Employers with fewer than 10 employees: 40-hour cap on accrued balance
• Carryover: All accrued, unused leave carries over to the next year, subject to the cap

What can PSLO leave be used for?

Permitted uses are broad:

• The employee's own illness, injury, or preventive care
• Care for a sick family member, broadly defined to include domestic partners and designated persons
• Time off related to domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking (this category overlaps with California Labor Code 230)
• Public health emergencies declared by the city or state

How does PSLO interact with California state sick leave?

California's state sick leave law was raised to 40 hours/5 days per year in 2024. The San Francisco PSLO is more generous on accrual cap (72 hours vs. 80 hours under state law), and the state law has more rigid minimum-use rules. Employers should design a single sick-leave policy that satisfies whichever rule is more protective on each variable: usage cap, frontload option, family-member definition, notice requirement, and documentation. The same policy can satisfy California's requirement and the PSLO if every rule is set to the higher of the two standards.

San Francisco Paid Parental Leave Ordinance (PPLO)

California Paid Family Leave (PFL) replaces roughly 70% of an employee's wages while bonding with a new child. The San Francisco PPLO requires covered employers to top that up to 100% of the employee's normal weekly earnings for up to eight weeks. Without the PPLO top-up, a San Francisco worker on PFL takes a meaningful pay cut during baby bonding leave.

Which employers are covered by the PPLO?

The PPLO applies to employers with 20 or more employees worldwide. Coverage is based on global headcount, not just San Francisco headcount.

Which employees qualify for PPLO supplemental compensation?

An employee qualifies if they:

• Work for a covered employer
• Began employment at least 180 days before the leave starts
• Perform at least eight hours of work per week in San Francisco
• Have at least 40% of their total weekly hours performed in San Francisco
• Are receiving California PFL bonding benefits

How is PPLO supplemental compensation calculated in 2026?

PPLO requires the employer to pay the difference between the California PFL benefit and 100% of the employee's normal gross weekly wages. PFL pays approximately 70% of weekly earnings up to a 2026 maximum of $1,765 per week. The employer pays the remaining gap to bring the employee to full pay, subject to the corresponding PPLO maximum.

How long does PPLO supplemental compensation last?

Up to eight weeks in any 12-month period, matching the maximum PFL bonding benefit. Both leave events run concurrently.

What documentation does the PPLO require?

Employees must complete the OLSE PPLO Form, which records the employer's supplemental payment obligation and authorizes the EDD to share PFL benefit information. Employers must keep records of PPLO payments, hours worked, and the PFL coverage period for at least three years.

San Francisco Public Health Emergency Leave Ordinance (PHELO)

The PHELO, voted in as Proposition G and effective October 1, 2022, requires large employers to provide additional paid leave whenever a public health emergency is declared. PHEL is layered on top of accrued PSLO leave, not in place of it.

When does PHELO leave become available?

PHEL is only available during a declared Public Health Emergency, defined as a local or statewide medical emergency from a contagious, infectious, or communicable disease (such as COVID-19), or an Air Quality Emergency declared by the Bay Area Air Quality Management District.

Which employers are covered?

Employers with 100 or more employees worldwide are covered. The headcount is based on the average number of employees per pay period in the prior calendar year.

How much PHEL leave do employees get?

Up to 80 hours per calendar year for full-time employees, prorated for part-time employees based on their average weekly schedule. PHEL is in addition to any PSLO leave the employee has accrued.

What happens if an employer denies PHEL improperly?

If OLSE finds that PHEL was unlawfully withheld, the employee receives an administrative penalty equal to the dollar value of the leave withheld multiplied by three, or $500, whichever is greater.

San Francisco Military Leave Pay Protection Act (MLPPA)

San Francisco's MLPPA, effective February 19, 2023, requires large employers to top up the pay of San Francisco employees called to short-term military duty so that those employees do not lose income while serving. There is no comparable California state requirement for private-sector employers.

Which employers are covered by the MLPPA?

Employers with 100 or more employees worldwide, measured by the average number of employees per pay period in the prior calendar year.

Which employees qualify?

Members of the reserve corps of the United States Armed Forces, National Guard, or other United States uniformed service organizations who work within the geographic boundaries of San Francisco. Part-time and temporary employees are covered.

What does MLPPA supplemental compensation cover?

For up to 30 calendar days per calendar year, the employer must pay the difference between the employee's gross military pay and the gross pay the employee would have received from the employer for their regular work schedule during the same period.

What are the penalties for non-compliance?

Failure to comply can result in:

• Three times the amount of differential pay withheld, or $250, whichever is greater
• Up to $50 per day to the affected employee for each day the compensation was withheld
• Suspension or revocation of the employer's city-issued certificates, permits, or licenses until compliance is achieved
• Additional enforcement-cost penalties of up to $50 per day

What recordkeeping does the MLPPA require?

Employers must keep records of employee schedules, hours worked, and military leave for at least four years and must allow OLSE to inspect those records on request. Handbooks must be updated to describe MLPPA rights in the next published edition.

San Francisco Family Friendly Workplace Ordinance (FFWO)

The FFWO gives caregivers a procedural right to request a flexible or predictable work arrangement. It does not guarantee schedule changes, but it does require employers to engage in an interactive process and respond in writing within strict timelines.

Which employers are covered?

Employers with 20 or more employees worldwide who employ workers either physically working in San Francisco or telecommuting and assigned to a San Francisco office.

Which employees can make a request?

Employees who:

• Have been employed for at least six months
• Regularly work at least eight hours per week
• Are the primary caregiver for a child, a family member with a serious health condition, or a family member age 65 or older

What can an employee request?

Examples include:

• A change in the number of hours worked
• A change in the days or times worked
• Greater predictability of the work schedule
• A change in work location, including telecommuting
• Job sharing

What is the employer's obligation under the FFWO?

The employer must respond in writing within 21 days. The employer must grant the request unless doing so would impose an undue hardship. Undue hardship is defined as a significant expense or operational difficulty when considered in relation to the size, financial resources, nature, or structure of the employer's business. Denials must be documented in writing with a specific business reason.

How does FFWO interact with state caregiver leave laws?

The FFWO is a procedural framework, not a leave entitlement. It does not replace or duplicate California Family Rights Act (CFRA), Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), or Paid Family Leave. An employee can request a flexible schedule under the FFWO whether or not they are eligible for those leave programs.

San Francisco Lactation in the Workplace Ordinance

San Francisco's lactation accommodation ordinance, codified at Article 33I of the Police Code and effective January 2018, sets quality standards for lactation rooms that go beyond California Labor Code 1030–1034. It also creates a written-policy requirement and a presumption of retaliation that does not exist at the state level.

Who must comply with the SF lactation ordinance?

Every employer with employees physically working in San Francisco, regardless of headcount. Coverage includes part-time employees.

What must the lactation room contain?

The lactation location must:

• Be safe, clean, and free of toxic or hazardous materials
• Contain a surface to place a breast pump and personal items
• Contain a place to sit
• Have access to electricity
• Be near a sink with running water and a refrigerator

What must the written lactation policy include?

The policy must:

• State that employees have a right to request lactation accommodation
• Explain how to make a request
• Inform employees that the employer will respond within five business days
• Require an interactive process to determine appropriate breaks and the lactation location
• Warn against retaliation

What recordkeeping is required?

Employers must keep records for three years of every lactation accommodation request, including the employee's name, the date of the request, and how the request was resolved.

What is the SF retaliation presumption for lactation requests?

If an employer takes adverse action against an employee within 90 days of the employee engaging in protected lactation-ordinance activity, retaliation is presumed. The employer must rebut that presumption with clear and convincing evidence that the action was taken solely for non-retaliatory reasons. That standard is significantly higher than the preponderance standard used in most retaliation cases.

San Francisco Formula Retail Employee Rights Ordinance (Retail Workers Bill of Rights)

San Francisco was the first city in the country to enact predictive scheduling for chain retailers. The Formula Retail ordinances apply to "formula retail" establishments, defined as businesses that operate as part of a chain of 40 or more locations worldwide.

Which employers are subject to the Formula Retail ordinances?

Coverage requires both:

• At least 40 formula retail establishments worldwide
• At least 20 employees in San Francisco

Janitorial and security contractors who provide services to covered formula retail employers are also covered.

What advance scheduling notice is required?

Schedules must be posted at least two weeks in advance in the workplace or made available electronically with employee access at work.

When does predictability pay apply?

If a schedule changes with less than seven days' notice, the employer must pay a premium of 1 to 4 hours of pay at the employee's regular hourly rate, depending on the amount of notice and the length of the shift. If an employee is required to be on-call but not called in to work, the employer must pay 2 to 4 hours of premium pay, again depending on notice and shift length.

What other Formula Retail protections apply?

The ordinances also require:

• Equal treatment for part-time employees in pay rate, paid time off, and access to additional hours
• An offer of additional hours to existing part-time employees before hiring new staff
• Retention of existing employees for 90 days when a covered business is sold or its ownership changes

San Francisco Worker Retention Ordinances (Grocery, Hospitality, Building Services)

San Francisco has industry-specific retention ordinances for grocery, hospitality, and certain building service workers that require successor employers to retain incumbent workers for a transition period after a change in control.

What does worker retention require?

When a covered business is sold or otherwise undergoes a change in control, the new operator must:

• Retain eligible incumbent employees for at least a 90-day transition period
• Refrain from terminating those employees during that period without cause
• Offer continued employment based on a written performance evaluation at the end of the period

Successor employers should build the headcount and seniority lists of incumbents into M&A diligence checklists for any San Francisco covered transaction.

San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance (FCO)

San Francisco's Fair Chance Ordinance bans criminal-history inquiries earlier in the hiring process than California state law and adds notice and individualized-assessment requirements that go beyond the California Fair Chance Act.

Who must comply with the SF Fair Chance Ordinance?

Coverage applies to:

• Employers with five or more employees worldwide hiring for positions that involve at least eight hours of work per week in San Francisco
• City contractors, subcontractors, and leaseholders regardless of headcount
• All position types, including temporary, seasonal, part-time, contract, contingent, and commission-based roles

When can an employer ask about criminal history?

Not until after a conditional offer of employment. Pre-offer inquiries on applications, in interviews, or in background checks are prohibited.

What records must be disregarded?

Employers must disregard:

• Arrests that did not lead to conviction, except for unresolved arrests where the applicant is awaiting trial
• Convictions older than seven years, with limited exceptions for positions involving supervisory or caregiver duties for children or vulnerable adults
• Diverted, sealed, expunged, or juvenile court records
• Convictions for decriminalized conduct such as certain marijuana-related offenses

What notice and assessment process does the FCO require?

Employers must:

• Provide an OLSE poster to each applicant or employee before any background check
• Conduct an individualized assessment of any conviction record before taking adverse action, considering the time elapsed and the relationship between the conviction and the job
• Offer the applicant an opportunity to respond with evidence of inaccuracy, rehabilitation, or mitigating factors before any final adverse decision
• Document each step in the file

How does the FCO differ from the California Fair Chance Act?

Key differences include:

• Lower coverage threshold. Five employees worldwide for the FCO compared to five employees nationwide for the state act
• Earlier disqualification of stale convictions. Seven years under the FCO
• Mandatory pre-background-check poster not required at the state level

Compliance with both is required for San Francisco hires, and the more protective rule applies on each variable.

San Francisco Consideration of Salary History Ordinance (Parity in Pay)

The Parity in Pay Ordinance, effective July 1, 2018, prohibits San Francisco employers from asking about or considering an applicant's salary history when making hiring or pay decisions. It runs alongside California Labor Code 432.3, which has substantially the same prohibition.

What does the SF salary history ordinance prohibit?

Employers may not:

• Ask applicants about their current or past salary or compensation
• Consider current or past salary in determining whether to hire or what to pay
• Disclose a current or former employee's salary history without that employee's authorization, unless the salary history is publicly available

What is permitted?

Employers may discuss salary expectations with applicants. The ordinance specifically allows that conversation as long as no inquiry is made into the applicant's actual salary history.

What are the penalties?

Administrative penalties scale with repeat violations:

• $100 per violation for the first offense
• $200 per violation for the second offense
• $500 per violation for each subsequent offense

San Francisco Wage Theft and Residential Construction Ordinances

San Francisco enforces wage theft on multiple tracks: a general wage-theft enforcement framework administered by OLSE, and a Residential Construction Wage Theft Prevention Ordinance (RCWTPO) that applies to construction projects on residential property.

What does the Residential Construction Wage Theft Prevention Ordinance do?

Effective June 6, 2022, the RCWTPO requires Project Owners on covered residential construction projects to either:

• Maintain a labor compliance bond, or
• File and maintain other acceptable security as determined by the Controller

The bond protects workers if a contractor or subcontractor fails to pay required wages on the project.

How does San Francisco wage theft enforcement work overall?

OLSE can investigate wage complaints, conduct on-site inspections, and assess back wages, liquidated damages, and administrative penalties. Repeat or willful violators can lose city-issued permits and licenses. A complete internal documentation workflow is the most reliable defense if OLSE opens an investigation. That includes clean payroll records, signed acknowledgments of policies, and documented complaint intake. An HR case management platform with audit-ready logs makes that defense substantially easier than scattering records across email and Slack.

How San Francisco OLSE Enforces These Ordinances

The Office of Labor Standards Enforcement is the primary enforcer for almost every San Francisco ordinance described in this guide. OLSE handles complaint intake, investigates employer practices, audits payroll and policy records, issues administrative determinations, and refers civil cases when needed.

How does OLSE start an investigation?

Investigations typically start one of three ways:

• Worker complaint filed online or by phone
• Anonymous tip through the OLSE complaint portal
• OLSE-initiated audit based on industry-wide enforcement priorities or referral from another city department

What records does OLSE typically request?

Common requests include:

• Payroll records for the relevant period (often two to four years)
• Time records, including any modifications or rounding policies
• Written ordinance-specific policies (PSLO, FFWO, lactation, FCO)
• Posted notices and signed acknowledgments
• Records of complaints, accommodations granted, or schedule change premiums paid

What penalties can OLSE assess?

Penalties vary by ordinance, but many follow a similar pattern:

• Back wages or restitution for affected employees
• Liquidated damages in addition to back wages on most wage ordinances
• Administrative penalties per violation, often escalating with repeat offenses
• Public posting requirements requiring the employer to post the violation in the workplace
• Suspension or revocation of city-issued permits, certificates, or licenses for repeat or willful violators

Posting and Notice Requirements for San Francisco Employers

San Francisco employers must post a stack of OLSE notices in addition to the standard California state and federal posters. Each ordinance has its own poster, and the OLSE updates them annually with the new wage rates and contribution amounts.

The required San Francisco-specific posters typically include:

• Minimum Wage Ordinance notice (updated each July 1)
• Paid Sick Leave Ordinance notice
• Health Care Security Ordinance notice
• Family Friendly Workplace Ordinance notice
• Fair Chance Ordinance notice (must be provided to each applicant before background check)
• Lactation in the Workplace Ordinance notice
• Public Health Emergency Leave notice
• Military Leave Pay Protection Act notice (if covered)
• Formula Retail Employee Rights notice (if covered)
• Salary History Ordinance notice

For city contractors, MCO and HCAO posters and signed annual acknowledgment forms are also required. All notices must be posted in English, Spanish, Chinese, and any other language spoken by 5% or more of the workforce.

Independent Contractor Classification in San Francisco

Independent contractor classification in San Francisco is governed by California state law, but local ordinances generally apply only to "employees," so misclassification can simultaneously be a state-law issue and the gateway to local-ordinance liability.

Which test applies?

For wage-order claims, California uses the ABC test codified by Assembly Bill 5. Under the ABC test, a worker is an employee unless the hiring entity can prove all three of these:

• A. The worker is free from the control and direction of the hiring entity in connection with the performance of the work, both under the contract and in fact
• B. The worker performs work that is outside the usual course of the hiring entity's business
• C. The worker is customarily engaged in an independently established trade, occupation, or business of the same nature as the work performed

Why does this matter for SF ordinance compliance?

A worker correctly classified as an independent contractor is generally not covered by the PSLO, HCSO, MCO, FFWO, FCO, or PPLO. A worker misclassified as a contractor when they should be an employee can trigger overlapping liability under each of those ordinances simultaneously, plus state PAGA exposure and California Labor Commissioner penalties. See the related California labor laws guide for state-level details. Domestic workers in private homes have additional written-contract protections under separate state law.

San Francisco Commuter Benefits Ordinance

San Francisco's Commuter Benefits Ordinance is administered by the San Francisco Environment Department, not OLSE, but it sits in the same employer-compliance stack and uses the same April reporting cycle as several wage ordinances.

Which employers are covered?

Businesses with a San Francisco location and at least 20 employees nationwide are subject to the ordinance. Employers with 50 or more employees in the Bay Area also have to report under the Bay Area Commuter Benefits Program administered by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission and the Bay Area Air Quality Management District.

What benefits qualify?

Covered employers must offer at least one of:

• A pre-tax benefit letting employees use up to $340 per month of pre-tax income for transit or vanpool expenses
• An employer-paid benefit equivalent to the price of the San Francisco Muni "A" Pass with BART access
• Employer-provided transportation, such as a company-funded shuttle or van service

When and how is compliance reported?

The SF Commuter Benefit Compliance Reporting Form is due by April 30 each year. Penalties for non-compliance scale from $100 (first violation) to $200 (second) and $500 (third), assessed 90 days after an initial written notice.

San Francisco Healthy Airport Ordinance and Quality Standards Program

Employers with workers covered by SFO's Quality Standards Program (QSP) face an additional layer of standards under the Healthy Airport Ordinance. These rules are separate from the citywide ordinances and apply only to airport workers in defined job categories.

Who is covered by the QSP?

QSP-covered employees are those who:

• Require an Airport Badge with Airfield Operations Area (AOA) access and work in or around the AOA, or
• Are directly involved in passenger or facility security or safety

What does the Healthy Airport Ordinance require?

QSP employers must provide:

• The QSP wage in effect for all hours worked
• Family health insurance at no cost to the employee, or contributions to a Medical Reimbursement Account at the City's rate per hour worked
• 12 paid days off per year
• 10 days off per year without pay

Because QSP and HCSO can apply to overlapping populations, airport-area employers should confirm which standard applies to which employees and document compliance under each.

San Francisco Worker Protections Ordinance (Grocery, Drug, Restaurant, On-Demand)

The Worker Protections Ordinance covers grocery stores, drug stores, restaurants, and on-demand delivery services. Among other things, it prohibits employment discrimination on the basis of COVID-19 status, a category that emerged from the pandemic and remains in force.

For covered industries, the ordinance reinforces:

• A right not to be retaliated against for testing positive, self-isolating, or seeking COVID-related care
• A right to use accrued PSLO leave for COVID-related reasons without disciplinary consequence
• Employer documentation requirements tied to the OLSE complaint process

Cannabis, Off-Duty Conduct, and Drug Testing in San Francisco

Cannabis and off-duty conduct are governed primarily by California state law, but San Francisco employers should understand how the state framework constrains hiring and discipline in the city.

Can a San Francisco employer test for cannabis?

As of January 1, 2024, California Government Code section 12954 prohibits most employers from discriminating against employees or applicants based on:

• Off-duty cannabis use away from the workplace
• Drug test results that detect non-psychoactive cannabis metabolites in hair, urine, or other bodily fluids

Employers may still prohibit cannabis use, possession, or impairment on the job, and may use tests that measure current impairment (such as oral fluid tests). Federally regulated positions and some safety-sensitive roles are exempt.

What about other off-duty conduct?

California Labor Code 96(k) and 98.6 protect employees against discharge or discrimination based on lawful conduct occurring during nonworking hours away from the employer's premises. SF employers should treat this as a baseline rule when investigating off-duty conduct complaints.

Mass Layoffs and Cal-WARN in San Francisco

San Francisco does not have a separate local WARN ordinance, but California's Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (Cal-WARN) imposes notice obligations stricter than the federal WARN Act and applies to most covered San Francisco employers.

Cal-WARN requires 60 days' advance written notice to affected employees, the Employment Development Department, the local workforce investment board, and the chief elected official of the city/county for any of the following actions at a covered establishment with 75 or more employees:

• Mass layoff (50+ employees in a 30-day period)
• Relocation more than 100 miles
• Termination of operations

San Francisco worker retention ordinances may also be triggered if the layoff is in the grocery, hospitality, or building services sectors and follows a change in control.

A San Francisco Employer Compliance Calendar

Most San Francisco compliance work clusters into a small number of recurring deadlines and ordinance-specific events. Building these into a single HR calendar prevents the most common OLSE-flagged failures: missed annual filings and out-of-date wage rates.

January

• Update HCSO expenditure rates for the new year (January 1)
• Update HCSO managerial-exemption threshold ($128,861 in 2026)
• Update MCO non-profit rate (effective January 1)
• Refresh PFL/SDI weekly maximums for PPLO calculations ($1,765/week in 2026)
• Replace required posters with the latest OLSE versions

April

• Submit SF Commuter Benefits Compliance Reporting Form by April 30
• Prepare HCSO Annual Reporting Form for May 1 filing

May

• File HCSO Annual Reporting Form with OLSE by May 1

July

• Apply the new minimum wage ($19.18 effective July 1, 2026)
• Update for-profit MCO rate (effective July 1)
• Update Formula Retail predictability pay rates for any chain operations

Ongoing throughout the year

• Annual signed acknowledgments for MCO and HCAO covered employees
• Annual sexual harassment training documentation under California state law
• Refresh of every required posting when ordinance amendments take effect

Common Compliance Mistakes San Francisco Employers Make

After enough OLSE investigations, the same patterns show up repeatedly. The mistakes below are common because they are easy to miss when an out-of-state HR team is administering San Francisco employees from afar.

Treating remote SF employees like state-of-residence employees

An employee who works from a San Francisco home is covered by every SF ordinance the same as an in-office employee. Failure to apply PSLO accrual, HCSO spending, FFWO procedures, and the SF minimum wage to remote SF workers is one of the most frequent OLSE findings.

Counting employees only in San Francisco for HCSO

HCSO coverage is based on worldwide headcount. Many companies miscount and treat themselves as small employers (under 20) when their global headcount triggers medium- or large-employer status.

Forgetting to update posters at year-end and mid-year

San Francisco poster requirements are unusually dense, and OLSE investigators routinely cite missing or outdated posters. The annual cycle is January 1 (HCSO, MCO non-profit, PPLO maximums) and July 1 (Minimum Wage, MCO for-profit).

Documenting FFWO requests informally

The FFWO requires a written response within 21 days. A casual email or Slack reply is generally not sufficient. The expected response includes a written decision, the basis for any denial, and a statement of the employee's right to request reconsideration.

Treating the FCO and California Fair Chance Act as identical

They are not identical. Both have to be satisfied independently. The FCO has a lower employer-size threshold and adds the pre-background-check poster requirement that the state act does not.

Skipping the lactation policy because the workforce skews male

The Lactation in the Workplace Ordinance applies to every San Francisco employer, regardless of headcount and regardless of current workforce composition. The policy itself must exist before any request is made, and the absence of a policy is itself a violation.

Industry-Specific Considerations for San Francisco Employers

A few industries face concentrated compliance load because multiple ordinances overlap on the same workforce.

Tech and professional services

For most SF tech employers, the heaviest ordinances are the HCSO, PSLO, PPLO, FFWO, and salary history rules. Out-of-state companies hiring remote California talent should treat any SF-based employee as triggering full SF compliance, including PSLO accrual and HCSO spending. The minimum wage and Formula Retail ordinances generally don't apply.

Restaurants, bars, and hospitality

Restaurants and bars get the full citywide stack plus California-specific tipped-wage rules (no tip credit allowed in California). Hotels with at least 50 rooms and certain hospitality operators also get the Hospitality Industry Worker Retention Ordinance, which is triggered when the business changes hands. Predictive scheduling under the Formula Retail ordinances applies to chain restaurants meeting the 40-location threshold.

Retail (chain and small)

Chain retailers meeting the formula retail definition (40+ locations worldwide and 20+ SF employees) get predictive scheduling, predictability pay, part-time equal-treatment, and the offer-of-additional-hours rule on top of all citywide ordinances. Independent and small retailers are exempt from the Formula Retail ordinances but still subject to the citywide ordinances.

Construction and contracting

Residential construction projects trigger the RCWTPO labor compliance bond. City contractors also pick up MCO and HCAO in addition to the citywide ordinances. Documenting subcontractor compliance is the contractor's responsibility under both MCO and HCAO.

Healthcare and home care

Healthcare employers face state-level workplace violence prevention rules (CA Labor Code 6401.9, expanded by SB 553 in 2024) layered on top of every SF ordinance. Home care and domestic workers in private homes have additional written-contract and recordkeeping protections under California Labor Code 1450 et seq.

Best Practices for Documenting San Francisco Compliance

SF compliance is documentation-driven. The substantive policy matters less than the employer's ability to prove what was done, when, and by whom. The practices below cover the audit trail that OLSE and plaintiffs' counsel typically request.

Maintain ordinance-specific written policies

Each major SF ordinance expects its own written policy or notice. At minimum, a SF-compliant handbook should include:

• A PSLO sick leave policy with accrual rate, cap, carryover, and uses
• A FFWO request-and-response procedure
• A lactation accommodation policy meeting the five-element requirement
• An FCO background-check disclosure with the OLSE poster attached
• A salary history compliance statement in the recruiting policy

Keep signed acknowledgments and disclosures

Any FCO disclosure, MCO acknowledgment, HCAO notice, or lactation accommodation request should be captured in writing and stored in a system that supports retention timelines (three years for lactation, four years for MLPPA, longer for payroll).

Centralize complaint intake

Complaints under different SF ordinances often arrive through different channels: a manager email here, a hotline call there, a direct OLSE inquiry elsewhere. Routing all of those through a single intake record creates the chain-of-custody documentation that supports any subsequent investigation.

Run quarterly compliance audits

Quarterly self-audits should cover:

• Current OLSE poster versions in each SF location
• PSLO accrual ledgers reconciled to actual hours worked
• HCSO spending logs with the right per-hour rate applied
• FFWO request log with response dates within the 21-day window
• FCO background-check files with required disclosures present

San Francisco Workplace Discrimination, Harassment, and Retaliation Standards

Discrimination and harassment in San Francisco workplaces are governed first by federal Title VII and the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), and second by Article 33 of the SF Police Code, which gives the San Francisco Human Rights Commission jurisdiction over additional protected categories.

What protected categories apply in San Francisco?

FEHA covers a long list of protected categories at the state level. Article 33 of the SF Police Code adds local enforcement on additional categories that include weight, height, and place of birth. The combined SF/CA list of protected categories includes:

• Race, color, ancestry, and national origin
• Sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, and related conditions)
• Gender, gender identity, gender expression, and sexual orientation
• Religion, creed, and religious dress and grooming practices
• Age (40 and older)
• Disability (mental and physical) and medical condition
• Genetic information
• Marital status, military and veteran status
• Weight and height (San Francisco)
• Place of birth (San Francisco)
• Reproductive health decision-making

When is harassment training required in California?

California employers with five or more employees must provide:

• Two hours of supervisor training every two years
• One hour of non-supervisor training every two years
• Training within six months of hire or promotion to a supervisory role

San Francisco does not require additional training, but the city expects employers to keep records of completion for state-law compliance audits.

How should SF employers handle harassment complaints?

A defensible investigation workflow includes:

• Confidential intake through a documented channel
• Prompt acknowledgment with timeline expectations
• A neutral investigator with no reporting line to the accused
• Witness interviews and document collection
• A written investigation report with findings of fact
• A documented remedial action and follow-up to confirm no retaliation

An employee relations platform that captures every step in a single chain-of-custody record makes it easier to defend the investigation if it later becomes the subject of a DFEH complaint or civil suit.

SF Smaller Leave Categories HR Teams Should Track

Several smaller California leave categories apply in San Francisco the same as anywhere else in the state. None of them are large enough to dominate a leave policy, but together they account for a meaningful share of the leave requests an HR team has to track.

• Voting leave (CA Elections Code 14000): Up to two paid hours of time off to vote, taken at the beginning or end of the shift unless mutually agreed otherwise
• Jury duty (CA Labor Code 230): Unpaid leave for jury service, with no adverse action permitted
• Witness leave (CA Labor Code 230): Unpaid leave to appear under subpoena
• School activities leave (CA Labor Code 230.8): Up to 40 hours per year of unpaid leave for school or licensed childcare activities, capped at eight hours per month
• Crime victim leave (CA Labor Code 230.5): Time off for crime victims and their family members to attend judicial proceedings
• Domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking leave (CA Labor Code 230 and 230.1): Time off and reasonable accommodations for victims to seek relief or treatment
• Bereavement leave (CA Government Code 12945.7): Up to five days of bereavement leave for the death of a covered family member
• Reproductive loss leave (CA Government Code 12945.7): Up to five days of leave following a reproductive loss event
• Organ and bone marrow donor leave (CA Labor Code 1508): Up to 30 days for organ donation and 5 days for bone marrow donation, paid for employers with 15+ employees

SF employers do not have to layer additional local categories on top of these, but they do have to track them in the same record system used for PSLO and PHEL leave for documentation purposes.

San Francisco Recordkeeping Requirements at a Glance

Different ordinances impose different retention periods. The longest applicable period generally controls. The most common SF-specific retention rules are:

• PSLO records: 4 years (hours worked, paid sick leave accrued and used)
• HCSO records: 4 years (per-quarter healthcare expenditure calculations and payments)
• MLPPA records: 4 years (schedules, hours worked, military leave dates)
• Lactation accommodation requests: 3 years
• FCO disclosure logs and assessments: 3 years
• FFWO request and response logs: 3 years
• Salary history compliance documentation: 3 years
• Payroll records (under California Labor Code 1174): 4 years for most pay records
• Cal/OSHA injury and illness records: 5 years for the Form 300, 300A, and 301

When in doubt, retain for the longest period any applicable rule requires.

How AllVoices Helps San Francisco Employers Stay Compliant

San Francisco compliance produces an unusually high volume of complaints and accommodation requests because so many ordinances overlap. PSLO requests, FFWO accommodations, FCO assessments, lactation accommodations, PHEL claims, MLPPA top-ups, and predictability pay disputes all generate documented HR workflows that must be retained and audit-ready. AllVoices is built for that workflow.

For San Francisco employers, AllVoices supports compliance in five concrete ways:

• Centralized intake for every ordinance type. A single intake form routes complaints, accommodation requests, and inquiries to the right HR owner. PSLO denials, FFWO requests, FCO disputes, and lactation accommodations all create their own audit trail.
• Investigation case management with chain-of-custody documentation. Every conversation, witness statement, document, and decision is timestamped and locked in HR case management, creating an OLSE-ready record without manual file-keeping.
• Vera AI intake assistant that handles initial complaint conversations in plain English, captures structured detail, classifies the complaint type, and assigns severity, so PSLO retaliation claims and FCO discrimination complaints are flagged correctly the moment they arrive.
• HRIS integrations with Workday, Rippling, Paylocity, BambooHR, and others let employee data, manager hierarchy, and PTO balances flow into the case record automatically, which matters when an OLSE investigator asks how a given complaint was handled.
• Reporting that covers ordinance-specific obligations. Annual filings (HCSO Annual Reporting Form, MCO and HCAO acknowledgments, lactation accommodation logs, PSLO retaliation tracking) are easier to produce when the underlying data lives in one place.

If your team is rebuilding compliance documentation for OLSE-prone ordinances, the fastest place to start is the demo of AllVoices. Most San Francisco HR teams need a documented intake-to-resolution workflow in place before they need a wage-and-hour audit defense.

Frequently Asked Questions About San Francisco Labor Laws

Do San Francisco labor laws apply to remote employees who work from home in San Francisco?

Yes. Almost every San Francisco ordinance is triggered by physical work performed within the geographic boundaries of San Francisco. A remote employee working from a San Francisco home is covered by the Minimum Wage Ordinance, PSLO, HCSO, FFWO, lactation ordinance, and salary history ordinance to the same extent as an in-office employee.

Does the San Francisco minimum wage apply if my company is based outside the city?

Yes. The ordinance applies to any employee performing at least two hours of work per week within San Francisco, regardless of where the employer is headquartered.

How do I count employees for HCSO coverage?

Employee count is based on the worldwide headcount, not the San Francisco headcount. A company with 95 employees nationwide and 10 in San Francisco is a medium employer for HCSO purposes; one with 110 employees nationwide and the same 10 in San Francisco is a large employer.

What happens if I forget to file the HCSO Annual Reporting Form?

Failure to file by May 1 can trigger a $500 per-quarter penalty separate from any underlying spending shortfall. Late or missed filings are also a common trigger for an OLSE audit of HCSO spending in prior years.

Are part-time and temporary employees covered by SF ordinances?

In almost every case, yes. The PSLO, Minimum Wage Ordinance, lactation ordinance, MLPPA, and FCO all explicitly cover part-time and temporary employees. The PPLO requires at least eight hours of weekly work in San Francisco and 40% of total hours in the city.

How are San Francisco wage and benefit ordinances enforced?

OLSE handles enforcement administratively for most ordinances and can assess back wages, liquidated damages, and per-violation penalties. Many ordinances also allow private rights of action, which means an employee can sue in civil court even if OLSE is also pursuing the same matter.

Can a San Francisco employer be penalized under both city and state law for the same violation?

Yes. State and local enforcement run on parallel tracks. A wage-statement defect, for example, can produce a California Labor Code section 226 penalty plus an OLSE administrative penalty plus a PAGA claim filed by an aggrieved employee.

What is the most common OLSE finding against employers?

Documentation gaps. Employers who pay correctly but cannot produce time records, signed acknowledgments, or written ordinance-specific policies often lose disputes they would otherwise win. The investigation hinges on what the employer can prove on paper.

The Bottom Line for San Francisco HR Teams

San Francisco compliance is a layered system, and the only sustainable approach is a single documented workflow that serves every ordinance at once. Posting requirements and signed acknowledgments matter as much as the policies themselves, because OLSE investigations live and die on documentation.

The 2026 priorities for San Francisco HR teams:

• By May 1, 2026: File the HCSO Annual Reporting Form for 2025 with OLSE
• By July 1, 2026: Update payroll, posters, and handbooks for the new $19.18 minimum wage
• Throughout 2026: Keep complete records of PSLO accrual and use, FFWO requests and responses, FCO assessments, lactation accommodations, PHEL grants, and MLPPA supplemental compensation
• Ongoing: Run intake, investigations, and recordkeeping in one platform so OLSE audits and private civil suits can be answered with audit-ready documentation

For a closer look at how AllVoices supports the documentation and case management workflows San Francisco HR teams rely on, schedule a walkthrough of the platform.