SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — Nearly 500,000 health care workers are expecting a raise this week after the state raised the industry's minimum wage.
State budget issues delayed the pay increase for several months.
Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill last year that would phase in pay increases for minimum wage health care workers, eventually earning them $25 an hour.
John Logan, SFSU labor and employment professor, explained how it works.
“This would impose a minimum wage of $18 to $23 an hour for a wide variety of health care workers, not just medical staff but also workers in health care facilities such as janitors, groundskeepers and cooks. included,” Logan said.
Read more: The economic impact of California's minimum wage hikes for fast food and health care workers
The wage increase will affect approximately 426,000 workers.
“My mom had a hip replacement last year. She was taken care of beautifully by the workers. But, you know, they don't make much money,” said Roseanne, a Bay Area resident.・Kropek said.
The minimum wage increase for healthcare workers was scheduled to take effect on June 1, but was postponed due to budgetary concerns.
Back in April, the minimum wage for fast food workers increased to $20 an hour.
“Fast food and health care are two very different industries, but we're seeing job growth in both industries, especially health care,” Logan said.
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Logan said the wage increases will help retain and recruit workers in the health care industry.
“It's a way to provide a near-living wage to hundreds of thousands of workers who previously weren't able to earn a living wage,” Logan said.
Some are wondering what the impact of raising the minimum wage will be and whether it will create more jobs or cause people to lose their jobs.
“It's unlikely to result in significant job losses, but it could change employment patterns in other ways,” Logan said.
Logan believes that raising wages, first for California's fast food workers and now for health care workers, will undoubtedly lead to changes in other industries and other states as well.
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