Gavin Newsom just signed a bill that gives fast food employees a huge minimum wage that could wreck the fast food industry unless companies can innovate.
According to Forbes, employees at fast food companies that have at least 60 locations nationwide must be paid $20/hr and it begins next April. And that’s just the beginning. It also establishes a fast food council that can raise the minimum wage each year by 3.5% through 2029.
California Fast Food Workers Secure $20 Minimum Wage—Highest In The U.S.https://t.co/cMSof1W0Rp pic.twitter.com/8Dz80P6cLh
— Forbes (@Forbes) September 28, 2023
Newsom acknowledged this on X/Twitter, claiming this is the ‘fair pay’ burger flippers deserve:
NEW: Fast food workers in CA will now be paid the highest minimum wage of any state in the country.
I just signed a bill that will ensure these workers receive the fair pay they deserve. https://t.co/lWbQhHKWaF
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) September 28, 2023
Speaking of innovation, it is already happening. And you can believe this minimum wage hike is going to make it happen even faster:
The Guardian: Touchscreens, conveyor belts: McDonald’s opens first largely automated location.https://t.co/a9yA01vfTn
— R.Alexander Ayyad-TX (I discuss ideas, not people) (@Alexander001a) December 24, 2022