Multiple California Cities to Increase Minimum Wage on July 1

Editor's Note: After a referendum petition against the ordinance was filed with the City Clerk's office on June 27, 2025, the City of Los Angeles has put the minimum wage increase for hotel workers on hold. 

As the cost of living continues to rise in California, the minimum wage in several cities and counties across the state will increase on July 1. The following are among the localities raising their minimum wage above the state’s $16.50-per-hour requirement:

• Alameda: $17.46 per hour
• Berkeley: $19.18 per hour
• Emeryville: $19.90 per hour 
• Fremont: $17.75 per hour
• Los Angeles City: $17.87 per hour
• Los Angeles County: $17.81 per hour
• Milpitas: $18.20 per hour
• Pasadena: $18.04 per hour
• San Francisco: $19.18 per hour
• Santa Monica: $17.81 per hour

Certain industries in some cities have specific minimum wages. In the city of Los Angeles, the minimum wage for hotel and airport employees will rise to $22.50 per hour. Similarly, in Santa Monica, the minimum wage for hotel employees will increase to $22.50 per hour as well. 

“If you are an employer and you have employees” in one of the relevant municipalities, “you need to adhere to what the local minimum wage rates are,” said Mark Wallin, an attorney with Barnes & Thornburg in Chicago, Minneapolis, and Los Angeles. In other words, the local minimum wage takes precedence over the state requirement.  

Cost of Living Drives Increase

The July increase continues the trend across California of raising the minimum wage to combat the rising cost of living. With the state’s housing costs soaring, municipalities in progressive areas are also facing political pressure from labor advocates and voters, said Michael Manoukian, an attorney with Lathrop GPM in San Jose, Calif.  

California will likely follow its cities’ lead in the near future, though not without opposition. Regarding an eventual $20perhour state minimum wage, “it is absolutely heading in that direction,” Manoukian said, especially as many industries have already reached that threshold. However, “as long as the housing and living costs in certain larger cities continues to rise, I think certain cities will have local minimum wages that are higher than that set at the state level.”  

Wallin agreed. Considering the trend over the past five to 10 years, “I think that [wages] will continue to march upwards,” he said. And with increasing wages come budgetary considerations for employers in the state. “Companies are going to have to continue to understand what those costs are going to be on their workforce and make decisions” regarding where they want to stage their operations, Wallin said.  

Employer Duties 

It is incumbent upon employers to stay updated on local wage laws. Wallin observed that often, employers that do not comply with the relevant minimum wage requirements were simply not aware. “Ignorance of the law is never going to be an excuse,” he cautioned, adding that it is lucrative for plaintiffs and their lawyers to file lawsuits alleging insufficient payment in California.  

Current and former employees can sue for back pay, unpaid overtime, meal and rest break claims, off-the-clock work, inaccurate wage statements, waiting time penalties, and nonpayment of wages, “all of which are directly impacted by the applicable minimum wage in effect,” Manoukian said. Also, because of the nature of the offense, it is likely that more than one employee would be affected. “Class-action and PAGA [Private Attorneys General Act] lawsuits are increasingly common in California when numerous employees are affected by unlawful pay practices, and the exposure in these types of cases can be catastrophic to a company,” he said.  

Companies with remote employees may need to take special care not to accidentally violate minimum wage statutes. The most common mistake employers make “is not taking the varying minimum wages into account when paying employees who work across a number of cities during the same pay period,” Manoukian said. “Employers must comply with the wage and labor laws where the employee performs the work, not just where the company is based, or where the employee resides.” This means that if a company is based in San Diego, but one of its employees works from home in Los Angeles, the company must pay that worker the minimum wage in Los Angeles.  

Best Practices 

In the end, it largely falls upon HR to confirm where hybrid and remote employees are located, Wallin said. Likewise, HR should stay up-to-date with any changes to the minimum wage. Wallin recommended that employers check local wage rates “sometime in the spring and sometime in the fall, because a lot of times you’re seeing [changes] in either January or July.”  

Employers are required to notify employees of new wage rates. “Transparency with pay practices can help foster a positive work environment” characterized by trust and open communication, Manoukian said. 

Employers should also be sure to monitor their payroll system to ensure the minimum wage is, in fact, being paid properly. “You need to make sure that whoever your payroll provider is, is doing it right,” Wallin said, “because it’s going to fall to the employer if any issues arise.”  

It is in the interest of employers, especially those with a mix of onsite, hybrid, and remote workers, to have a reliable digital payroll system. “Small businesses — like all businesses — should explore technological advancements and automation to streamline labor, payroll, and wage and hour compliance,” Manoukian said. Automated systems reduce human error and save time and money.  

“With minimum wages only rising,” Manoukian added, “improving operational efficiency is crucial to protecting the bottom line.”