"Californians will see the minimum wage increase to $16.90 per hour starting Jan. 1. The adjustment - a boost of 40 cents per hour - was calculated in August by the Department of Finance as part of its minimum wage annual review required by state law. California has been raising its minimum wage over the past decade. Former Gov. Jerry Brown in 2016 signed a watershed law to increase minimum wage from $10.50 per hour to $15 per hour, plus annual adjustments for inflation."
"The current rate of $16.50 per hour suggests that a minimum wage worker needs to work 98 hours per week to afford a one-bedroom rental at fair market rent in California, according to the National Low Income Housing Coalition. California is one of 19 states to raise minimum wages in 2026, according to payroll company ADP. Cities and counties can also set their own minimum wages."
"West Hollywood will have a $20.25 minimum wage starting in January - the highest of any California city, according to the UC Berkeley Labor Center. Voters last November narrowly rejected a ballot measure that would have increased the minimum wage to $18 per hour. But some low-wage workers this year have successfully lobbied for bumps in pay in specific industries."
California's minimum wage will increase to $16.90 per hour on Jan. 1, a 40-cent boost calculated by the Department of Finance as part of the state's annual wage review. The state enacted phased raises beginning in 2016 that raised the floor from $10.50 to $15 and added annual inflation adjustments. At the current $16.50 rate, a worker must work 98 hours weekly to afford a one-bedroom at fair market rent. California is among 19 states raising wages in 2026, while local jurisdictions can adopt higher rates. Sectoral laws set fast-food wages at $20 and health care at $25, with some local agreements targeting $30 for hotel and airport workers.
Read at San Jose Inside
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]