Can a California Employer Threaten Immigration Action? 

Workers should be able to ask about unpaid wages, report harassment, raise safety concerns, or learn about their workplace rights without fearing that their employer will use immigration status against them.

California law already provides important protections against immigration-related retaliation. A bill currently awaiting action by Governor Newsom, Assembly Bill 2495 (AB 2495), would expand those protections further. If AB 2495 becomes law, it would address not only immigration-related retaliation after a worker exercises a protected right, but also certain conduct intended to discourage workers from speaking up in the first place.

Can My Employer Threaten to Call Immigration Authorities?

California law already prohibits employers and other parties from engaging in certain unfair immigration-related practices for retaliatory purposes.

Examples can include:

• Threatening to contact immigration authorities
• Contacting immigration authorities in retaliation
• Threatening to file or filing certain false reports with government agencies
• Improperly demanding additional immigration or work authorization documents
• Improperly using the federal E-Verify system

These protections can apply when immigration-related conduct is used in retaliation for an employee exercising protected workplace rights.The new bill, AB 2495 seeks to broaden those protections.

What Would AB 2495 Change?

One of the central issues addressed by AB 2495 is when the intimidation occurs. Current California law already addresses immigration-related retaliation after a worker exercises certain rights.

AB 2495 would also prohibit certain conduct related to a person’s perceived immigration status when that conduct would reasonably tend to discourage the person from exercising a workplace right in the first place.

In practical terms, the bill addresses situations in which immigration-related intimidation may be used to keep a worker silent before the worker ever files a complaint. For example, an employee may be considering:

• Reporting unpaid wages
• Asking whether the employer is following wage-and-hour laws
• Reporting workplace harassment
• Raising a safety concern
• Asking about legally protected leave
• Helping another employee understand their rights
• Filing a workplace complaint

If immigration-related threats or intimidation are being used to discourage the employee from taking those actions, AB 2495 could provide additional protection.

The Protection Would Extend Beyond California Labor Code Rights

AB 2495 would also broaden the types of workplace rights covered by California Labor Code Section 1019. The proposed language covers rights provided by local, state, or federal statutes or regulations applicable to employees. That is significant because workplace protections do not come from a single California law. Depending on the circumstances, an employee’s rights may arise under local ordinances, California statutes, federal employment laws, or regulations governing the workplace.

What Counts as an Unfair Immigration-Related Practice?

Under the proposed law, prohibited retaliatory conduct could include several immigration-related tactics. Examples include:

Threatening to Contact Immigration Authorities

An employer cannot simply use the threat of immigration enforcement as leverage against an employee because the employee asserted protected workplace rights. A threat does not necessarily have to be delivered in formal writing.

Depending on the circumstances, statements about “calling immigration,” reporting someone, or suggesting that speaking up could create immigration problems may raise concerns.

Improperly Requesting Immigration Documents

Federal law governs the documentation employers may request to verify authorization to work. California law identifies certain improper demands for additional or different documents as potential unfair immigration-related practices when undertaken for prohibited retaliatory purposes.

Improper Use of E-Verify

The proposed statute also continues to address use of the federal E-Verify system at a time or in a manner that is not legally required or otherwise authorized when it is done for a prohibited retaliatory purpose.

False Reports to Government Agencies

Threatening to make, or making, certain false reports or complaints to government agencies may also qualify as an unfair immigration-related practice.

Does the Employee’s Actual Immigration Status Matter?

AB 2495 specifically states that a person’s actual immigration status is irrelevant to determining liability under this section. The focus is on the employer’s conduct and whether immigration-related tactics were unlawfully used in connection with workplace rights. Employees should not automatically assume that they have no workplace protections because of concerns about immigration status.

Who Would AB 2495 Protect?

The bill’s definition of an employee includes:

• Current employees
• Former employees
• Job applicants

The proposed protections may also reach certain conduct affecting other people exercising rights protected by employment laws. That means these issues may arise not only while someone is actively employed, but potentially during hiring or after the employment relationship ends.

What Happens If the Employer Acts Shortly After I Speak Up?

Timing can be important in retaliation cases. Under AB 2495, prohibited conduct occurring within 90 days after a person exercises a protected workplace right would create a rebuttable presumption that the conduct was retaliatory.

A rebuttable presumption does not automatically determine the outcome of a case. However, it can affect how the evidence is evaluated.For example, timing may become important if an employee raises a wage complaint and shortly afterward receives an immigration-related threat.

What Remedies Could Be Available?

AB 2495 would allow an employee or other person subjected to prohibited conduct to bring a civil action seeking applicable damages, penalties, or equitable relief.

If a person prevails, available remedies could include:

• Applicable damages
• Equitable relief
• Reasonable attorney’s fees and costs
• Civil penalties

The bill provides for a civil penalty of up to $10,000 per employee or person for each violation, in addition to other remedies that may be available. In certain circumstances, courts may also order temporary suspension of particular business licenses for violations. The exact remedies available would depend on the facts of the individual case.

What Should I Do If My Employer Makes an Immigration-Related Threat?

If you believe your employer is using immigration concerns to prevent you from exercising your workplace rights or to punish you for doing so, consider preserving evidence.

That may include:

• Text messages
• Emails
• Workplace messaging conversations
• Voicemails
• Written complaints
• Pay records
• Schedules
• Disciplinary notices
• Names of witnesses
• Notes documenting what was said and when
• Communications with HR or management

If possible, keep important records somewhere you can access outside of your employer’s email or computer systems. Write down specific statements while you still remember them clearly, including who made the statement, when it occurred, and whether anyone else witnessed it.

Is AB 2495 Already California Law?

Not yet.

AB 2495 passed the California Assembly and Senate and was presented to the Governor on September 3, 2026.

As of September 2026, the bill is awaiting gubernatorial action. That distinction is important. Employees already have protections against certain forms of immigration-related workplace retaliation under existing California law. AB 2495 would expand those protections if enacted.

Immigration Threats Should Not Be Used to Silence Workplace Concerns

Employees may understandably hesitate to report illegal workplace practices when they believe doing so could lead to immigration-related consequences for themselves or their families.

California law already restricts the use of immigration-related practices as retaliation, and AB 2495 reflects an effort to broaden those protections to address intimidation that occurs before a worker exercises a protected right. If your employer has threatened immigration action after you reported a workplace issue, discouraged you from making a complaint, or used your perceived immigration status to intimidate you, you may have legal rights under California law.

Fraigun Law Group represents employees in Sherman Oaks, Los Angeles, and throughout California in workplace disputes involving retaliation, discrimination, harassment, wage violations, and other employment matters. Contact our office to discuss your situation and the protections that may apply.