What employment rules does San Francisco add for employers?

Last updated September 29, 2026. What changed: Added the 2027 Health Care Security Ordinance spending rates.

San Francisco has more local employment ordinances than any other Bay Area city, and several of them switch on at headcounts well below where state rules do. They are enforced by the city’s Office of Labor Standards Enforcement (OLSE), which audits employers and publishes its settlements. The list below runs from the rules that apply to everyone to the ones that start at larger sizes.

Every employer with someone working in the city

• Minimum wage: $19.61 an hour from July 1, 2026, for anyone who works at least two hours a week inside San Francisco, adjusted each July for inflation (McGuireWoods summary).
• Paid sick leave: one hour per 30 worked; employers with fewer than 10 employees may cap balances at 40 hours, and those with 10 or more at 72 hours (SF.gov, Paid Sick Leave Ordinance). State law’s annual minimum still applies on top.
• Required city posters at each workplace, and electronically for remote staff who work from San Francisco homes.

At 5 employees: Fair Chance Ordinance

Employers with five or more employees worldwide cannot ask about conviction history on an application or before a conditional offer, cannot consider certain records at all (such as infractions and convictions older than seven years), and must give written notice and time to respond before taking back an offer because of a background check. California’s own Fair Chance Act (Government Code 12952) sets a similar process statewide; San Francisco’s version adds its own notice and poster requirements.

At 20 employees: health care spending

The Health Care Security Ordinance requires covered employers to spend a minimum hourly amount on health care for each covered employee who has worked more than 90 days and regularly works at least eight hours a week in the city (SF.gov, HCSO). Headcount counts everyone, wherever they work.

Employer size (worldwide)	2026 rate per hour payable	Monthly maximum per employee
Under 20 (under 50 for nonprofits)	Exempt	None
20 to 99 (50 to 99 for nonprofits)	$2.74	$471.28
100 or more	$4.11	$706.92

Rates from NFP, 2026 HCSO rates. From January 1, 2027 the rates rise to $2.99 an hour for medium employers and $4.49 for large ones (SF.gov, HCSO). Managers, supervisors and confidential employees earning above $128,861 in 2026 ($131,763 in 2027) are exempt. The trap: offering a generous health plan does not satisfy the ordinance for an employee who declines it. You still owe the spending, usually through the City Option program. Covered employers file an annual report with OLSE each spring.

At 20 employees: parental leave and flexible work requests

• The Paid Parental Leave Ordinance requires employers with 20 or more employees to supplement California Paid Family Leave bonding benefits so eligible employees receive close to their full weekly pay, up to a cap.
• The Family Friendly Workplace Ordinance gives employees with caregiving duties the right to request a flexible or predictable schedule, and requires a written response within set timelines.

Formula retail

Chain retailers with 40 or more locations worldwide and 20 or more employees in San Francisco fall under the Formula Retail Employee Rights Ordinances: schedules two weeks in advance, predictability pay for late changes, and offering hours to existing part-time staff before hiring.

What small San Francisco employers miss most

The 20-employee line. A startup that crosses 20 people worldwide, with even a few working in the city, picks up health care spending, parental leave supplements and flexible work request duties in the same quarter. The startup HR guide by funding stage shows where that usually lands, and the Bay Area hub compares San Francisco to its neighbors.

Looking for an HR consultant in San Francisco? I work with San Francisco employers from Oakland, and the compliance check-up covers HCSO spending, the Fair Chance Ordinance and parental leave alongside state law.

McKinley holds a J.D. but is not a licensed attorney. Articles here are general information, not legal advice. For your specific situation, talk with an employment attorney.

Data current as of September 2026. Sources are linked where each figure appears.