I think everyone understands why you want to spin the California minimum wage hike as anything but a looming bust.
Although the bump in pay is intended to help improve the standard of living for more than half a million fast-food workers, there may be unintended consequences that could do more harm to these employees.
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The Unintended Consequences Of California’s $20 Minimum Wage For Fast-Food Workers
Jack Kelly
Senior Contributor
Jack Kelly covers career growth, job market and workplace trends.
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Jul 26, 2024,06:00am EDT
(Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
California officials are reportedly considering a further increase to the recently implemented $20 minimum wage for fast-food workers. The California Food Council, which was established by Governor Gavin Newsom, is planning to propose an
additional 3.5% raise for 2025 at their upcoming meeting in late July, according to Restaurant Business.
The industry is already finding ways to cut employment.
"California’s minimum-wage law, which went into effect in April 2024, currently requires that fast-food restaurants with 60 or more locations nationwide increase their workers' pay to $20 an hour, which is $4 higher than the state’s minimum wage."
"Although the bump in pay is intended to help improve the standard of living for more than half a million fast-food workers, there may be unintended consequences that could do more harm to these employees, including restaurant closures, job cuts, reduced hours and increased deployment of automation to bring down expenses."
Technologies To Replace Human Workers
There has been an
increase in automation and self-service technology. Restaurants are deploying self-order kiosks, kitchen automation software and other labor-saving technologies to reduce reliance on human workers.
