California will raise its minimum wage to $15.50 per hour for all workers beginning next year as inflation soars across the nation, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Thursday.
Newsom, a Democrat, noted that the increase was needed due to a provision in the state’s existing minimum wage law, signed by former Gov. Jerry Brown in 2016, which mandates a minimum wage increase to $15.50 when inflation exceeds 7 percent.
California’s Department of Finance forecasts that will happen by the end of June.
“The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in persistent supply chain disruptions and labor market frictions have driven inflation to its highest rate in 40 years,” said Newsom in a statement. “These conditions have further been exacerbated by Russia’s war in Ukraine.”
…