The California minimum wage will rise 50 cents to $16 an hour in less than a week. Fast-food chains with 60 or more locations must pay $20 per hour starting April 1, 2024. Economists expect these salary rises to affect customers.
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California Minimum Wage Hike Sparks Concerns and Layoffs at Pizza Hut
California’s minimum wage is going to go up, and experts like David Neumark from UIC say that it could lead to longer lines, less clean places, and higher prices for consumers.
Because of the pay hike, David Smith from Pepperdine University says that the state could lose up to 50,000 jobs. Already, workers at Pizza Hut in the South Valley have been let go, and delivery drivers have been sent letters of separation.
Delivery driver Marvin William Lopez Rangel, who has worked for Pizza Hut for five years, feels cheated and worries about how this will affect workers and clients. Pizza Hut says that its locally owned and run chains are aware of the layoffs, which are set to start in the middle of February.