Minimum wage in California has been increased to $14 per hour, as new business and labor laws come into effect Friday. The change applies to businesses that have 26 or more employees. Businesses with 25 or fewer employees are required to increase the minimum wage to $13 an hour. Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a statement announcing the change that he wanted to ensure all Californians to benefit from the economic recovery. “Not allowing this increase to go forward will only make life harder for those Californians who have already borne a disproportionate share of the economic hardship caused by this pandemic,” Newsom said. “Many of them are on the front lines of the pandemic, providing child care, working in our hospitals and nursing facilities and making sure there’s food on grocery store shelves.” California has been incrementally raising the state’s minimum wage annually since 2017, with a goal of …