As of Monday, half a million fast-food workers in California are to be paid a minimum wage of $20 per hour.
The minimum wage of many California food chain workers rose to $20 per hour from $16 per hour on Monday, sparking joy among the employees. The authorities have also informed about the potential downside of the move stating that the sudden increase in the average hourly wage might ultimately cost jobs.
California Fast-Food Workers Get $20 Hourly Minimum
The change, which has now come into effect after years of fight by Californian workers, applies to restaurants with more than 60 nationwide locations. The law also creates a fast-food council with representatives from both the workers and the restaurant industry who can jointly decide to increase the wage annually for the coming ten years, after calculating the inflation or up to 3.5%, whichever is higher.
The council, which is the first of its kind in the US, is also entitled to protect the safety of the workers and is also in charge of investigating issues like wage theft. Staff making tacos, flipping burgers, or brewing coffee are now allowed to earn a decent amount each hour, one of the highest base rates in the country.
“It will help me take things easier, especially when it comes to paying my rent or buying groceries,” said Angelica Hernandes, one of the employees at McDonald’s in Los Angeles.
She further added how the current raise is huge for the workers as the maximum they had received after being “good workers” was 25 cents.
Another worker, Jaylene Loubet, who works in McDonald’s as a cashier said: “I think it is a very big deal.”
Meanwhile, some of the owners of the restaurants are not happy with the decision as they have already increased the menu price over the last few months, cut worker hours, or both. So, they anticipate that the affected owners will now have to limit their ownership to not more than 60 restaurants.
“I think it is all one side,” Michaele Mendelsohn, a franchisee who is a member of the newly formed council said, adding, “I think to be successful, our employees need to be successful as well.”
More than half a million California people are employed at globally familiar chains like Taco Bell, and Burger King, and hence, the new law is thought to improve their living standards.
According to The Koonse of the University of California, LA, the vast majority of the individuals employed in the fast food sector are either women or people of color, who receive an annual wage of $25,800, an amount that is way lower than the state median.
She further added that people generally assume that the fast food workers are teenagers who work for pocket change or to buy a new iPad. “The truth is, half of them are over 25, and a quarter of them are the sole breadwinners of their homes,” she added.
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She believes that the hike in some way would improve the lives of people who are likely to fall under the official poverty line of the country.
The Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom suggested the law and it was signed by California legislation last year. In conjunction with the law, some of the restaurant owners have said that they will have to further increase the price of the menu to keep a balance.
“Everyone is going to have to pay more,” Jack Hartiung, the chief financial officer of Chipotle Mexican Grill said.