California pay data reports due May 14

The details

A private employer that has 100 or more employees, with at least one California employee, must submit a pay data report covering the prior calendar year to the state on or before the second Wednesday of May each year, regardless of whether they are required to submit an EEO-1 report.

A private employer that has 100 or more employees, with at least one California employee, hired through labor contractors within the prior calendar year must also submit a separate pay data report to the state covering those employees. The private employer must also disclose on the pay data report the ownership names of all labor contractors used to supply employees. A labor contractor must supply all necessary pay data to the private employer.

New and updated resources

The CRD published a new handbook for employers that provides instructions for submitting and certifying annual reports to the CRD, including the types of data requested and relevant deadlines.

Instructions for Excel templates and CSV examples (i.e., template instructions) are also available. The CRD has also updated templates for the 2024 reporting period. Employers shouldn’t use Excel templates or .CSV examples from prior years; the portal will reject submissions based on outdated versions of the templates.

The CRD has updated its answers to frequently asked questions for the 2024 reporting period.

Changes to the Race and Ethnicity Categories

In 2024, the federal Office of Management and Budget (OMB) published revised race and ethnicity data standards. As a result, the CRD has updated minimum categories, terminology, and definitions for race/ethnicity categories based on the OMB’s updates.

These revisions include:

• Adding Middle Eastern or North African (MENA) as a minimum reporting category separate from the White category.
• Removing “Other” from the “Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander” category name.
• Using “Multiracial and/or Multiethnic” terminology rather than “Two or More Races.”

For the 2024 reporting year, the CRD has stated that employers may report individuals with MENA origins following OMB’s 2024 standards if this information is available (e.g. if the employer has already collected this information because MENA was an available category employees could choose).  However, if this information is not available (e.g. because MENA was not an available category employees could choose) then employers may follow the EEOC’s 2023 EEO-1 guidance. Under the EEOC’s 2023 guidance, individuals with MENA origins are reported under the “White” race/ethnicity category.

For more information on the new set of race and/or ethnicity categories, see FAQs “How should employers report employees’ race and ethnicity?” and the handbook.

Next steps

If you are a covered employer:

·       ADP TotalSource® is unable to file the California Pay Data Report on your behalf with the CRD. You must file on your own after retrieving a pay data report from MyTotalSource® and verifying the information on the report.

·       Determine your “Snapshot Period,” which is a single pay period between Oct. 1 and Dec. 31 of the reporting year (in this case, 2024). The Snapshot Period is used only to identify employees who must be reported on in the pay-data report. Importantly, when identifying the employees to be reported on, it doesn’t matter whether an employee was paid during the Snapshot Period; it only matters whether the employee was employed during the Snapshot Period.

·       Determine which establishments you have and gather information about each establishment.

·       For all employees in the Snapshot Period, identify each employee’s establishment, job category, race/ethnicity, sex, pay band, and hours worked.

·       For all associates who exclusively work from home, ensure the “work from home box” is checked under HR>Employment Profile>Under EEO/Work Location.

·       Register in the portal and provide information about your business, parent/affiliates (if any), and other information.

·       Provide a Yes or No answer for the required questions in column J and K of the spreadsheet: “Was a California Pay Data Report filed for this establishment last year?”, “Was an EEO-1 Report filed fort his establishment last year?”

·       Provide any clarifying remarks and correct any errors identified by the portal.

·       Certify the final report and submit by May 14, 2025.

·       Consult legal counsel if you have specific questions about your reporting obligations.

We understand navigating through new regulations can be challenging. If you are unsure and need additional support, please call our dedicated line at 877.310.0825 Option 2 or send us an email at hrotaxuiclaims@adp.com. A member of our team will be happy to assist with any questions.

Note: If you are required to file a pay data report for labor contractors, you must follow a similar process for your labor contractor employee report and submit it through the portal separately from your payroll employee report.