California voters narrowly rejected a ballot measure that would have raised the state minimum wage for some employees to $18.00 per hour by January 1, 2025, and for all California employees by January 1, 2026. This reportedly is the first rejection of a minimum wage ballot measure in the state’s history.
Quick Hits
- California voters turned down a measure to increase the minimum wage to $18.00 per hour for all employees across the state by January 1, 2026.
- The rejection comes after the state raised the minimum wage for fast-food workers to $20.00 per hour in April 2024.
California’s Proposition 32 would have immediately raised the state minimum wage for employees with twenty-six or more employees to $17.00 per hour immediately and to $18.00 per hour on January 1, 2025. Proposition 32 also would have increased the minimum wage for employers with twenty-five or fewer employees to $17.00 per hour on January 1, 2025, and to $18.00 per hour on January 1, 2026.
The ballot measure was defeated with only 49.2 percent voting “yes” for the ballot measure, according to the state’s unofficial election results as of November 20, 2024. While the vote will not be certified until December 2024, major media has called the election.
Statewide votes on minimum wage increases are generally successful, but opponents of Proposition 32 warned that the increases could lead to higher prices for everyday products, higher costs for small businesses, and job cuts.
The rejection of Proposition 32 also comes after the California Food Accountability and Standards Recovery Act (FAST Recovery Act) set a new $20-per-hour minimum wage for workers in most fast-food restaurants in April 2024.
Under the current minimum wage law, the California minimum wage for non-fast-food workers is $16.00 per hour and will increase to $16.50 per hour on January 1, 2025.
