- Minimum Wage Boost: Beginning January 1, 2025, California’s minimum wage will be $16.50 per hour for all employers. This is the wage base at the state level, localities might impose their own wage base.
- Small Increase: This new rate will be $16.50, up by just half a dollar from the previous rate.
- Inflation Adjustment: The increase is based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI), which reported a 3.18% rise over the past year.
- Voter Decision: The $16.50 minimum wage came after CA voters rejected Proposition 32 on November 5, 2024. That measure sought to increase the bottom end of the pay scale even more, that is, to $18.00 per hour for larger employers and $17.00 per hour for smaller employers by 2025.
- Who It Affects: New $16.50 minimum wage will be effective to all employers throughout the “Golden State” irrespective of the number of employees that each employer maintains.
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