What is AB 504 and How Does it Impact Nail Techs?

KEY TAKEAWAYS: For decades, working as an independent contractor has been a valid way for nail techs to experience the freedom to build the career of their dreams their way. With the “AB 5” law forcing nail techs to be classified as employees of the salon where they work, that freedom is in jeopardy.

The flexibility most beauty professionals experience in their careers is massively appealing. While we’re certainly including the creative freedom to express your art and pursue your passion in that, we’re also referring to the actual way in which you work.

Most beauty professionals–including nail techs–can choose to work for themselves, start their own business, or work as an employee in a salon. In other words, you can craft your own professional path to achieve the career you envision.

For nail techs in California, that dream is no longer possible due to legislation AB 5.

The good news? Help is on the way in the form of California Assembly Bill 504.

Everything Nail Techs Need to Know About California AB 504

What is California AB 504?

Since 2019, California has been operating under AB 5. This law uses something called the “ABC test” to determine the status of a worker.

The result has been the reclassification of many beauty pros–including nail techs–as employees rather than independent contractors.

While there are some advantages to this distinction, such as adherence to minimum wage laws, AB 5 effectively removed the freedom of nail techs to work for themselves as they pursue their dream career.

The result has been salons facing serious fines, lawsuits, and other crippling challenges.

Hope, however, is on the horizon. California Assembly Bill 504 (AB 504) was filed by Republican assembly member, Tri Ta, in February 2025.

This proposal seeks to amend the Labor Code instituted by AB 5, allowing nail techs to be classified as independent contractors once again.

How AB 504 Impacts Nail Techs

Should AB 504 pass, nail techs would be exempt from the rigorous employment status testing that AB 5 currently subjects them to.

This means that they would join other beauty pros who are already exempt–such as aestheticians, barbers, and cosmetologists.

This exemption would give nail techs the freedom to choose their career trajectory for themselves rather than allowing the state to dictate it for them.

Nail techs could choose to be independent contractors, set their own hours, build their own brand, and create their own network of clients.

These positive outcomes, highlighted by independence and a right to self-determination, are compelling, and many nail techs would be grateful for the opportunity to once again set their own course.

It would also grant nail techs the same opportunities other beauty pros experience, thereby leveling the playing field and treating them as equals.

However, there are some concerns related to AB 504 and a return to what was considered the norm before AB 5 went into effect.

Is AB 504 a Good Thing?

In many ways, AB 504 would return things to normal. The ABC test implemented by AB 5 has only been in effect for a few short years (and only a few months for nail techs), meaning that it is a recent revelation, not an established norm.

So, why are people concerned about the passage of AB 504 and a return to the freedom of nail techs to be independent contractors?

It comes down to the theoretical protections that classification as an employee can provide. Independent contractors are not entitled to the same provisions as employees, and some believe forcing employers to provide these state-mandated protections to be more valuable than granting nail techs the flexibility to decide for themselves.

Some of the protections potentially available to employees include:

• Minimum wage
• Sick pay
• Overtime pay
• Worker’s compensation
• Unemployment insurance

What Nail Techs Should Know About AB 504

The impact AB 5 has had on the beauty industry cannot be understated. Many small businesses and local salons simply do not have the capacity to make the changes demanded by this law, leaving them with no choice but to cut staff or close their doors altogether.

In other words, AB 5 has and will continue to have a major impact on the beauty industry, especially small businesses that rely on a booth rental model to make ends meet.

AB 504 would provide much-needed relief from these pressures and the legal threats that accompany them by returning the industry to a state more closely aligned with the previous norm.

We encourage you to research the topic more thoroughly, get involved in advocating for your position, and consider signing petitions directed at or sending letters to your representatives to make your voice heard.

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