SR Holguin, PC is a union-side labor and employment law firm with nearly four decades of experience representing private sector unions, public sector unions, and multi-employer trust funds. SR Holguin, PC and its team of attorneys are committed to providing full-service legal representation to each of our clients.
One way in which SR Holguin, PC ensures our clients and their members stay informed is by keeping you updated on recent developments relating to workers’ rights. Today’s updates come following the January 1, 2023 California Minimum Wage Increase.
Workers Who Could be Impacted: Workers Throughout California
On January 1, 2023, California’s minimum wage increased to $15.50 per hour for all employers.
It is important to note that some cities and counties have a local minimum wage that is higher than the state rate. This includes 40 localities: Alameda, Belmont, Berkeley, Burlingame, Cupertino, Daly City, East Palo Alto, El Cerrito, Emeryville, Foster City, Fremont, Half Moon Bay, Hayward, Los Altos, Los Angeles, Unincorporated Los Angeles County, Malibu, Menlo Park, Milpitas, Mountain View, Novato, Oakland, Palo Alto, Pasadena, Petaluma, Redwood City, Richmond, San Carlos, San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose, San Leandro, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Santa Monica, Santa Rosa, Sonoma, South San Francisco, Sunnyvale, and West Hollywood.
According to the California Department of Industrial Relations “In 2016, California passed a law to raise the minimum wage to $15.00 per hour statewide by 2022 for large businesses with 26 or more employees, and by 2023 for small businesses with 25 or fewer employees. This law increased the minimum wage over time, consistent with economic expansion while providing safety valves if adverse economic conditions emerged. One of the protections outlined in the minimum wage law involves an annual review of the United States Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (U.S. CPI-W) by the Department of Finance. This past July, the Department of Finance found that the inflation rate had increased by 7.9%, which required an increase in the minimum wage by 3.5%, resulting in the $15.50 per hour rate for 2023. After 2023, the minimum wage will increase based on the lesser of 3.5 percent and the rate of change in the averages of the two most recent U.S. CPI-W unless those averages are negative. If the averages are negative, there shall be no increase or decrease in the minimum wage for the following year.”
Further, “the change in the minimum wage also affects the minimum salary an employee must earn to meet one part of the overtime exemption test. Exempt employees are not subject to the payment of overtime for working overtime hours. An employee must earn no less than two times the state’s minimum wage for full-time work to meet this initial requirement of the exemption test. As of January 1, 2023, employees in California must earn an annual salary of no less than $64,480 to meet this threshold requirement.”
We hope these updates are helpful to you.
Fraternally,
SR Holguin, PC