Some of California’s lowest-paid health care workers will receive phased-in wage increases to at least $25 an hour under state law Wednesday.
Workers at local independent health care facilities will begin earning a minimum wage of $18 an hour, while other employees at hospitals with at least 10,000 full-time employees will also begin receiving at least $23 an hour starting this week. The law would increase wages for workers over the next 10 years, with the $25 an hour rate hitting some people sooner than others.
About 350,000 workers will receive additional pay under the law starting Wednesday, according to the University of California, Berkeley Labor Center.
“Today’s victory is about the grueling work and impact on patients when workers hold two or three jobs, such as on understaffed nursing home floors, hospital operating rooms, hospital front desks and phone lines. It belongs to the workers who spoke passionately about community health clinics,” Democratic state Sen. Maria Elena Durazo, who authored the legislation, said in a statement.
Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the law last year, and workers’ raises were scheduled for June. Lawmakers and the governor agreed to delay the bill this year to close an estimated $46.8 billion budget shortfall.
The law applies to a wide range of workers, including those providing services in psychiatric facilities, emergency clinics and residential facilities, according to the state Department of Industrial Relations. It does not apply to employees of state-run health facilities.
The minimum wage for most workers in California is $16 an hour. Voters will decide in November whether to gradually increase the wage to $18 an hour by 2026, the minimum wage for all U.S. states. Fast food workers in California must now be paid at least $20 an hour under a law signed by Newsom. last year.
When the law was passed last year, some health care providers expressed concern that it would place a financial burden on hospitals as they try to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. Critics said the law could lead to providers cutting hours and hiring.
Sarah Bridge, vice president of advocacy and strategy for the California Association of Health Districts, said many hospitals in the state have already begun raising wages under the law’s original schedule.
Bridge said the law “clearly creates financial pressures that weren’t there before.” “But all of our members are ready to implement change.”
Carmela Coyle, president and CEO of the California Hospital Association, said last year that the bill would support workers and protect access to health care.
“SB 525 strikes the right balance between protecting jobs, significantly improving wages, and protecting care in community hospitals across the state,” she said in a statement.
