September 25, 2013

Governor Signs California Minimum Wage Increase Into Law

As expected, Governor Brown signed legislation to raise California’s minimum wage today.  The new law raises the minimum wage to $9 per hour on July 1, 2014 and to $10 per hour on January 1, 2016.  Thus far, it is the only bill to be passed into legislation this year that the California Chamber of Commerce designated as a “job killer.”  Employers should be aware that the minimum wage increase will also affect the minimum salary that can be paid to employees to make them exempt from California onerous overtime requirements.  In order to be exempt from the overtime laws, employees must be paid a monthly salary equivalent to no less than two times the state minimum wage for full-time employment.