CA Votes Against Minimum Wage Increase For 2025

For the first time in decades, voters rejected an effort to raise the minimum wage in California.

The ballot measure would have increased the state’s minimum wage from $16 to $18 per hour by the year 2026. If passed, it would have been the highest minimum wage in the nation.

Currently, the state’s minimum wage for all workers is $16 per hour. Fast food workers in the state now make $20 per hour. Healthcare workers will see their minimum wage rising to $25/hour over the next decade, thanks to a law Governor Newsom signed in 2023.

Led by entrepreneur and anti-poverty advocate, Joseph Sanberg, Proposition 32 fell just short of passing, receiving 49.2% of the votes. Advocates had hoped it would help offset the increasing cost of living for gas, housing, and other necessities. While California automatically increases the minimum wage based on inflation, many say it is not enough.

Raising Wages In Two Steps

The initiative would have raised the wages in two bumps:

• It would have raised the minimum wage to $17 per hour for the remainder of 2024
• Then it would have pushed it to $18 starting in January of 2025

Small businesses with 25 or fewer employees would have been required to pay at least $17 per hour in 2025 and $18 in 2026.

Why Did California Voters Turn Down The Minimum Wage Increase?

Opponents, including the California Chamber of Commerce, say the measure’s defeat is a sign that voters don’t want to pay the higher prices that often accompany minimum wage hikes. They also point to the possibility that raising the minimum wage could lead to higher taxes and job cuts.

What’s more, Proposition 32 received less attention than some of its more contentious minimum-wage initiatives, such as the push to pay fast food and healthcare workers a living wage. The ongoing push to raise the state’s minimum wage has also led to a patchwork of “wage floors” that made the $18/hour initiative obsolete.

In some cities, the minimum hourly rate already exceeds that of the state. In fact, nearly 40 cities offer a higher minimum wage than mandated by the state.

Still, Sanberg and others like him vow to continue fighting to increase living wages for all California workers. Proponents maintain that the measure would have helped about 2 million California workers, including grocery and hotel employees.

Are You Being Paid Less Than Minimum Wage in California? Contact Your California Employment Law Firm At D.Law!

While Proposition 32 didn’t pass, you and other workers in California are entitled to earn at least the minimum hourly rate. If you are receiving less than $16 per hour before taxes, you need an employment lawyer to help you get the payment you deserve. Contact your lawyer at D.Law. We are incredibly experienced in California employment law, and we can help you get the pay you earned while working in the Bay Area, San Diego, Fresno, Los Angeles, and other CA cities.