Inflation forces minimum wage hike

SACRAMENTO >> Soaring inflation will trigger an automatic increase in California's minimum wage next year, Gov. Gavin Newsom's administration announced Thursday.

The minimum wage will jump to $15.50 per hour Jan. 1, highest of any state. That's an increase from $15 per hour for companies with more than 25 employees and $14 per hour for companies with 25 workers or less.

California lawmakers voted to increase the minimum wage to $15 per hour in 2016, but the increase was phased in over several years. The law says the minimum wage must increase to $15.50 per hour for everyone if increased by more than 7%. Thursday, the California Department of Finance said they project inflation for the 2022 fiscal year — which ends June 30 — will be 7.6% higher than the year before, triggering the increase.

Official inflation figures won't be final until this summer. But the Newsom administration believes the growth will be more than enough to trigger the automatic increase.

Inflation has been a problem everywhere, as consumer prices jumped 8.3% last month from a year ago and diluted the purchasing power of the U.S. consumer. A labor shortage throughout the pandemic has prompted many companies to increase pay sometimes beyond the minimum wage just to attract and retain workers.

California has about 3 million minimum wage workers, according to a conservative estimate from the state Department of Finance. The increase in the minimum wage will be about $3 billion.