California’s minimum wage will be increasing Tuesday for the first time in six years.
The change is a result of AB10, a bill Gov. Jerry Brown signed into law last fall. The bill also calls for the minimum wage to increase to $10 an hour at the start of 2016.
The U.S. Department of Labor reports about 6 in 10 workers earning a minimum wage are employed in service industries, such as food preparation and hospitality.
Currently, California’s minimum wage is $8 an hour, while the federal minimum wage is $7.25 an hour.
This year, 21 states will be paying their workers more than the federal minimum wage.
At the new California minimum wage of $9 an hour, a full-time worker will earn $360 a week and $18,720 a year before taxes.
Economists say the living wage hasn’t kept up with the cost of living for the past 40 years.
A study by the National Low Income Housing Coalition shows a minimum wage worker in California would need to work more than 130 hours a week to afford a two-bedroom apartment.
A proposal to raise the minimum wage in San Diego is still being considered by City Council. New York City, Chicago, San Francisco and Oklahoma City are also considering minimum wage increases.
