California AB 701 Warehouse Quota Law
California AB 701 Warehouse Quota Law is the 2021 state law, in effect since January 1, 2022, that requires large warehouse employers to disclose productivity quotas in writing and bans quotas that prevent breaks or safe work.
What it requires
It covers employers with 100 or more workers at one California warehouse distribution center, or 1,000 or more across the state, counting staffing agency workers. Each worker must get a written description of every quota that applies to them and the penalty for missing it. Quotas may not prevent meal or rest breaks, bathroom use, or safe work. On request, the employer must provide the quota and the worker's last 90 days of speed data within 21 calendar days. Discipline within 90 days of a request is presumed retaliatory.
Why it matters
AB 701 turns warehouse productivity targets into a compliance document, so any 3PL or brand running a large California building must be able to show its units per hour goals in writing. Unwritten targets cannot be used to discipline anyone. For example, a fulfillment center in the Inland Empire that measures pickers against 120 units per hour in its labor management system must give each picker that number and explain how breaks and bathroom time are excluded. If a picker asks for their data, the employer has 21 days to produce it. Washington, New York, Minnesota, and Oregon have since passed similar warehouse quota laws.
Events
Related laws
- OSHA Powered Industrial Trucks Standard (29 CFR 1910.178)1971, amended 1998 · Forklift safety and operator training rules
- Warehouse Worker Protection Act2021 · State laws regulating warehouse productivity quotas
- Washington Warehouse Worker Quota Law (HB 1762)2023, effective July 2024 · Washington law on warehouse quotas and safety
Sources
Not legal advice.