Once upon a time (aka a couple of years ago), many others and I predicted California’s rush to jack various minimum wages would invoke the law of unintended (dire) consequences, which would also be completely ignored as lessons go.
The ‘Clueless, Pandering Democrats Bone Working Stiffs and Business Owners Yet Again’ Maxim
This particular 2023 post dealt with two specific laws taking effect in April 2024 that boosted the pay of company/franchise-owned fast-food workers to $20 hr ($4 above the state minimum wage of $16 for everyone else), and healthcare workers were boosted into the $18-23 hr range depending on the job description thanks to some heavy union lobbying and creative job category reclassifications.
For businesses like Pizza Hut, that meant their delivery drivers now fell into the $20/hr employee bracket, too. For many of those drivers, this law meant they were the first to receive pink slips, and almost immediately, as businesses scrambled to find savings ahead of the law coming into effect.
…Right now it’s about 1200 jobs gone at these franchises.
…“Well, I knew that was coming. All these big corporations they have to make money,” said Scot Ward, owner of Stone Pizza in Roseville.
…”What these businesses are going to do is cut out employees to make up for the money they are losing,” said Ward.
One year later, as the California Globe reported, the National Bureau of Economic Research issued its findings on the first full year of the minimum wage law AB 1228’s impact on CA workers’ new and improved quality of life. It seems the law had had very much the opposite effect, from outright job losses to decreased hours for those lucky enough to retain their employment.
Hellbound and Down 