California voters have rejected Proposition 32, which would have increased the minimum wage for all California employers to $18 per hour by 2026. But don’t breathe easy just yet; the California minimum wage will rise to $16.50 per hour on January 1, 2025, an inflation-adjusted 3.18% year-over-year increase.

Moreover, a number of local jurisdictions in California have adopted a minimum wage higher than the statewide minimum wage:

• Belmont, $18.30
• Burlingame, $17.43
• Cupertino, $17.75
• Daly City, $17.75
• East Palo Alto, $17.45
• El Centro, $18.34
• Foster City, $17.40
• Half Moon Bay, $17.47
• Hayward, $17.36 for employers of 26 or more, $16.50 for employers of 25 or fewer
• Los Altos, $18.20
• Menlo Park, $17.10
• Mountain View, $19.20
• Novato, $17.27 for employers of 100 or more, $17 for employers of 26-99, $16.50 for employers of 25 or fewer
• Oakland, $16.89
• Palo Alto, $18.20
• Petaluma, $17.97
• Redwood, $18.20
• San Carlos, $17.32
• Santa Clarita, $18.20
• San Diego, $17.25
• South San Francisco, $17.70
• San Jose, $17.95
• San Mateo, $17.95
• San Mateo County, $17.46
• Sonoma, $18.02 for employers of 26 or more, $16.96 for employers of 25 or fewer
• Sunnyvale, $19
• West Hollywood, $19.65

FELS strongly recommends employers familiarize themselves with requirements of these local statutes and ordinances to ensure your compliance if you do business in any these localities.