California Pay Data Reporting

The deadline for companies to submit California Pay Data Report is quickly approaching. All required reporting must be submitted to the California Civil Rights Department (CRD) by May 13, 2026.

Overview of California Pay Data Reporting

California requires private employers with 100 or more employees (including at least one in California), to submit annual pay data reporting. Furthermore, a separate “labor contractor report” is required if a private employer engages 100 or more labor contractor employees (including at least one in California). Employers must provide information regarding employee counts, pay bands, demographic data, and hours worked.

For the 2026 reporting year, additional required data elements include:

• Exemption status
• Employment type
• Total weeks worked during the reporting year, including paid leave

CRD Pay Reporting Templates

The CRD has issued standardized templates for submission. Employers may be required to submit two separate reports:

• A Payroll Employee Report covering internal payroll employees
• A Labor Contractor Employee Report covering workers provided through third parties or staffing agencies, including TCWGlobal

The reporting template requires the following information:

• Number of employees working onsite in California
• Number of remote employees located within California
• Number of remote employees located outside of California but assigned to a California establishment
• Exemption status
• Employment type
• Total hours worked during the reporting year, including paid leave

Demographic Reporting Requirements

Employers may not list "unknown" for race, ethnicity, or sex. While employees are encouraged to self-identify during onboarding, employers are no longer permitted to mark demographic information as unknown, even if an employee declines to provide it. Employers are expected to make a reasonable determination when necessary.

Accessing Your TCWGlobal Worker Report

Although the CRD submission deadline is May 13, 2026, we encourage you to begin preparing your data in advance. TCWGlobal has made accessing your labor contractor data simple through WebCenter.

To download your report:

• Log in to your WebCenter account.
• Select the "Reports" tab and locate the "CA Pay Transparency Report."
• Enter a snapshot period between October 1, 2025, and December 31, 2025.
• Export the results to an Excel file and add any additional labor contractor employees not provided through TCWGlobal.
• Follow the instructions on the CRD portal to complete your submission. Please note that internal payroll employees must be reported separately.

We Are Here to Support You

We understand that compliance with California reporting requirements can be complex. In October, the Governor of California announced an additional change that will impact the reports due in May 2027. Employers will be required to classify workers using 23 job categories from the Standard Occupational Classification system, replacing the current 10 EEO-1 job categories.

Our team is committed to supporting you through this transition. We have already updated our reporting capabilities to incorporate the new SOC classifications to help ensure a smooth and accurate reporting process for 2027.

If you are not currently utilizing TCWGlobal for your California workforce, we welcome the opportunity to discuss how our services can help simplify your compliance efforts.

If you have any questions or need assistance accessing your report, please contact your TCWGlobal Account Manager or email hello@tcwglobal.com. Our team is happy to assist you.

For more information on Pay Transparency and California’s Pay Data Reporting requirements, additional resources are available on our website, including the following articles:

https://www.tcwglobal.com/blog/california-civil-rights-department-amends-pay-data-reporting-requirements

https://www.tcwglobal.com/blog/new-guidance-provided-by-the-california-civil-rights-department-on-pay-data-reporting

https://www.tcwglobal.com/blog/labor-contractor-employee-reports

https://www.tcwglobal.com/blog/what-is-pay-transparency-and-is-your-company-ready