Measure would increase minimum wage and then tie it to inflation
by Brian Leubitz
Asm. Luis Alejo (D-Watsonville) has been focusing on living wage issues for a while now, and has pursued an increase in the minimum wage in bills that have been previously defeated twice.
This year’s attempt, AB 10, would make some big changes to how our lowest paid employees live.
Alejo is the author of AB 10, which would give the Golden State its first minimum wage increase since 2008. The bill would raise it 25 cents an hour next year, 50 cents in 2015 and an additional 50 cents to $9.25 an hour in 2016. In 2017 and annually thereafter, hourly pay would be adjusted upward automatically, based on the state’s inflation rate.(LA Times)
Now, as you would expect, the Chamber of Commerce is revving up big time on this issue. Our $8 minimum wage is 7th in the nation, but then again, cost of living is generally higher here than most other states. And with President Obama calling for a national increase the issue got a boost here as well. But, if Asm. Alejo can’t get it through the Legislature, this is one of the most solid issues to have appear on the ballot. It polls well, brings out the progressive base, and can make a real difference for many Californians.
Just to clarify, minimum wage employees aren’t the lowest paid employees in the state or country. Goodwill and other organizations exploit a loophole in federal labor law to pay some employees less than the federal minimum wage.
From a piece I wrote for the Huffington Post: “Under Section 14 (c) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, employers can apply for a special wage certificate that allows them to hire people with disabilities at a subminimum wage. Nationally, more than 300,000 workers are subjected to the law. Goodwill uses the special minimum wage exemption to take advantage of 7,300 of its 105,000 employees.”
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/…
Last year, I also wrote a piece for CalWatchdog about the five California-based Goodwill charities that pay hundreds of employees less than minimum wage, while providing lucrative compensation packages to top executives. OC Goodwill pays an average wage of $4.65 per hour.
http://www.calwatchdog.com/201…