A recent paycheck can matter to an equal pay claim even if the pay difference began years ago. California’s new rule doesn’t start the clock only when an employer first sets a wage rate or adopts a compensation policy.
As of November 4, 2026, the California Equal Pay Act provides a clearer filing period for wage disparities based on sex, race, or ethnicity.
What SB 642 Changed on January 1, 2026
SB 642, called the Pay Equity Enforcement Act, was signed on October 8, 2025, and took effect on January 1, 2026. It amended California Labor Code section 1197.5, the state’s Equal Pay Act, to establish a uniform three-year period for commencing an action to recover equal pay wages.
Before SB 642, an employee generally had two years to bring a non-willful Equal Pay Act claim and three years for a willful violation. The new law removed that intent-based distinction. Under current law, a civil action must begin no later than three years after the last date the cause of action occurs.
A statute of limitations is the legal deadline for starting a lawsuit. It’s separate from the amount of back pay that might be available if a violation is established.
How the Filing Clock Applies to Paychecks
The law recognizes more than the original pay-setting decision as a possible claim date. A cause of action occurs when an allegedly unlawful compensation decision or practice is adopted, when an employee becomes subject to it, or when the employee is affected by its application.
That last category matters when a suspected pay disparity continues over time. California Labor Code section 1197.5 treats each payment of wages, benefits, or other compensation affected by the alleged practice as an occurrence. A recent paycheck can therefore be relevant even when the suspected disparity began much earlier.
The statute also preserves the possible use of the continuing violation doctrine and the discovery rule in appropriate cases. The continuing violation doctrine can treat connected unlawful conduct as ongoing rather than as a single event. The discovery rule concerns when a person knew or reasonably should have known about a claim. Which dates control depends on the compensation practice, payment history, and facts of the individual claim.
The Filing Deadline & Relief Period Are Different
The filing deadline and the period of recoverable relief answer different questions. An employee must commence an Equal Pay Act action within the applicable three-year filing period, measured from the claim’s latest occurrence. The law allows relief for the entire period a violation exists, up to six years.
That six-year maximum doesn’t create six years to wait before filing. It’s the outer limit on the period of back pay or other relief that may be available after a timely action is brought.
Employers must keep wage, wage-rate, and job-classification records for three years. Employees should preserve their own materials for longer when possible, particularly when older pay history could show how compensation changed over time.
Useful Records to Save
These materials can help reconstruct a compensation timeline:
- Pay stubs, offer letters, bonus records, and benefits statements.
- Job descriptions, work assignments, schedules, and performance materials.
- Emails or messages about pay, promotions, raises, or concerns raised with management.
Compensation & Pay Differences Covered by the Law
An equal pay concern isn’t limited to base salary. The amended law defines wages and wage rates broadly to include:
- Salary and overtime pay.
- Bonuses and profit sharing.
- Stock and stock options.
- Insurance and other benefits.
- Vacation and holiday pay.
- Allowances and reimbursements.
The comparison concerns the work performed, not job titles alone. California’s Equal Pay Act addresses employees of another sex or of another race or ethnicity who perform substantially similar work when viewed as a composite of skill, effort, and responsibility under similar working conditions.
An employer must show that one or more of the following factors, reasonably applied, account for the entire pay difference:
- A seniority system.
- A merit system.
- A system that measures earnings by the quantity or quality of production.
- A bona fide factor other than sex, race, or ethnicity.
A bona fide factor must be job-related, consistent with business necessity, and unrelated to a protected-trait pay differential. Prior salary doesn’t justify a compensation disparity.
Retaliation Has a Separate One-Year Deadline
The new filing period doesn’t extend the deadline for retaliation under the Equal Pay Act. An action under California Labor Code section 1197.5 must be commenced within one year after the retaliatory cause of action occurs.
Protected activity includes discussing wages, asking about equal pay rights, or asserting an Equal Pay Act concern. When an employer takes adverse action within 90 days of that activity, the law creates a rebuttable presumption of unlawful retaliation. The employer then has an opportunity to present evidence against that conclusion.
An employee can bring an Equal Pay Act retaliation claim through the Labor Commissioner’s Office or directly in court. Filing with the Labor Commissioner isn’t required before starting a court action, but the separate one-year deadline deserves prompt attention.
What to Gather Before an Equal Pay Consultation
Identifying a deadline is only one part of evaluating a possible claim. A fact-specific assessment also considers the duties performed, the employees whose work and pay provide comparison points, the compensation components at issue, and the employer’s stated reason for the difference.
Write down key dates while they’re fresh:
- When the position began.
- When pay changed.
- When the potential disparity became apparent.
- When any adverse workplace action followed a pay discussion or complaint.
Avoid altering workplace records or taking materials that don’t belong to you. Preserve documents you lawfully possess and maintain a clear timeline of what occurred.
We evaluate individual Equal Pay Act matters and potential class actions for California workers when a suspected pay practice extends across a workforce. A timely evaluation can distinguish the filing deadline, the possible six-year relief period, and any separate retaliation issue.
Zakay Law Group offers free consultations by phone, in person, or virtually, and we handle equal pay cases on a contingency basis. To discuss an equal pay concern, reach us at (619) 353-8032.