A $20 minimum wage for most fast food workers in California went into effect Monday under a new law designed to give more financial security to an historically low-paying profession.
Critics say the law threatens to raise prices in a state already known for its high cost of living.
Democrats in the state Legislature passed the law last year in part as an acknowledgement that many of the more than 500,000 people who work in fast food restaurants are not teenagers earning some spending money, but adults working to support their families, the Associated Press reported.
The law was supported by the trade association representing fast food franchise owners. But since it passed, many franchise owners have complained about the impact the law is having on them, especially during California’s slowing economy, the AP reported.
California has doubled its minimum wage for most workers to $16 per hour over the last decade. A big concern over that time was whether the increase would cause some workers to lose their jobs as employers’ expenses increased.
Instead, data showed wages went up and employment did not fall, according to the report.
“I was surprised at how little, or how difficult it was to find disemployment effects. If anything, we find positive employment effects,” Michael Reich, a labor economics professor at the University of California-Berkeley. Told the AP.
The law applies to restaurants offering limited or no table service and which are part of a national chain with at least 60 establishments nationwide. Restaurants operating inside a grocery establishment are exempt, as are restaurants producing and selling bread as a stand-alone menu item.
