California workers are legally entitled to higher minimum wages than the levels set in many other states across the country and those required under federal law. To be able to enforce your rights under the state’s wage and hour laws, you first have to understand how those laws work.
At Justice Law Corporation, we help working people across the state ensure that they are fully paid and fight back when they are shortchanged. Our California wage and hour attorneys combine decades of experience with a strong track record of successful results for the people we represent.
California’s minimum wage laws do not simply set a single hourly pay floor statewide. Instead, there are different requirements for different types of employers. Cities and counties also have the power to adopt higher local wage standards.
Here is what you need to know.
California’s Statewide Minimum Wage
State law sets the overall hourly minimum wage that must be paid to employees in California. The rate increases periodically under a framework created in 2016 — a move designed to account for inflation.
The current minimum wage statewide in California is $16.50. This applies to nearly all employees in the state, with limited exceptions. The state’s overtime law requires employers to pay workers at higher rates for time worked beyond 8 hours a day or 40 hours per week.
The minimum wage will increase to $16.90 in 2026. The California Department of Finance calculates each year whether the minimum wage should be increased to account for inflation. The rate cannot be reduced, but any increases are capped at 3.5 percent per year.
Local Minimum Wages: Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Beyond
Many cities and counties—particularly in Los Angeles and the Bay Area—have adopted their own ordinances. Employers in these places must pay the higher, local minimum wage rates.
A full list of city and county minimum wage rates can be found here.
Employers with operations in multiple cities or counties must comply with the wage floors based on where their workers perform their jobs, not where the company is based or where the employees live. They also cannot credit tips as part of the minimum hourly wages.
Healthcare Workers
Many healthcare workers in California are covered by a separate minimum wage structure that is specific to the industry. Pay minimums vary based on the size and type of healthcare facility for which the employees work.
The required minimum pay can be seen here. Those rates are automatically set to increase gradually in the coming years and will be adjusted for inflation going forward.
Fast Food Workers
Fast food workers at many restaurants across the state are also covered by a separate minimum wage scale. They must be paid at least $20 per hour, with inflation-adjusted increases likely on the way.
The fast food rate covers workers at national chains with at least 60 establishments nationwide. It does not include employees at full-service restaurants, bakeries, and those located at airports, hotels, theme parks, museums, casinos, and event centers.
Like healthcare workers, fast food employees in places where the local minimum wage exceeds the industry pay floor must be paid at the higher rate.
Overtime Pay for Workers in California
Most workers are entitled to higher pay rates for overtime. These rates kick in when employees work more than 8 hours in a day or 40 hours in a specific week.
Employees must be paid 1.5 times their regular rate for any work performed beyond those time limits. The overtime rate increases to twice the regular pay rate for hours worked beyond 12 in a day or 8 on the 7th consecutive day in a workweek.
Take, for instance, a person who is paid $20 per hour. If he or she works overtime, the employee must be paid at the time-and-a-half rate of $30 an hour or the double time rate of $40 an hour, depending on the circumstances.
Worker Misclassification
Sadly, many businesses try to avoid paying minimum wages and other obligations to their workers by classifying them as independent contractors rather than employees.
Independent contractors generally are treated like self-employed entrepreneurs. They are not protected by minimum wage and overtime laws, and they are responsible for paying taxes and other expenses usually covered by employers.
Worker misclassification is rampant throughout California and across the country. The good news is that it is not up to businesses to simply decide whether a person is a contractor or an employee. State law requires that companies treat their workers as employees, except in limited circumstances.
The vast majority of workers in California are employees, not independent contractors. Our California wage and hour attorneys have successfully helped working people challenge their misclassification and recover the pay they are owed as a result.
Our California Wage and Hour Attorneys Can Help
If you believe that you are being shortchanged on the job, whether it is by being underpaid or in other terms and conditions, you do not need to go it alone.
A California wage and hour attorney at Justice Law Corporation can help you evaluate your claim and understand your rights and options. We have a strong track record of optimal results through verdicts and settlements for the people that we represent.
Our office is conveniently located in Pasadena. Contact us at (818) 230-7502 to schedule a free consultation with a California wage and hour attorney.
