Court Strikes Portions of Inglewood’s Health Care Worker Minimum Wage Ordinance

In 2022, the City of Inglewood passed a health care worker minimum wage ordinance. The new $25 minimum wage applies to private-sector health care employees who work in hospitals, integrated health systems, and dialysis clinics in Inglewood.

The new minimum wage applied to clinicians, nurses, certified nursing assistants, aides, technicians, maintenance workers, janitorial or housekeeping staff, groundskeepers, guards, food services workers, laundry workers and pharmacists but does not include managers or supervisors.

The California Hospital Association challenged the law and recently the district court struck portions of the ordinance as pre-empted by the National Labor Relations Act. The judgment strikes Sections 8-152 (c)–(d), which prohibit the employer from funding the minimum wage increases required by the ordinance by:

• Reducing premium pay or shift differentials.
• Reducing benefits such as vacation and health care.
• Reducing hours worked.
• Laying off workers.
• Increasing charges to workers, such as for parking.

It is possible the City of Inglewood could appeal the decision of the court, though no appeal has been filed to date.

Meanwhile, the governor’s push to delay the statewide health care minimum wage is still in limbo. To date, the health care minimum wage increase statewide will take effect June 1.

Jonathan A. Siegel is an attorney with Jackson Lewis in Orange County, Calif. Allen F. Acosta is an attorney with Jackson Lewis in Los Angeles. © 2024 Jackson Lewis. All rights reserved. Reposted with permission.