The City of Los Angeles Raises the Minimum Wage to $15 An Hour

Los Angeles became the largest US city to raise its minimum wage to $15 an hour on Tuesday, as a wage increase bill passed the city council by a vote of 14-1.

It is now up to city attorney Mike Feuer to draft an ordinance to implement the new minimum wage requirements. The ordinance will then return to the council for a final vote before becoming law. Under the proposed legislation, the city’s minimum wage would increase to $10.50 in July 2016, and would increase incrementally every year until it reaches $15 in July 2020. For small businesses with 25 or fewer employees, the wage hike would come on a modified schedule with the incremental increases starting in July 2017 and the minimum wage reaching $15 by July 2021.
Seattle workers hail ‘historic moment’ as city sets course for $15 minimum wage
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The current minimum wage in California is $9 an hour and is set to increase to $10 in January 2016.

In the past year, two other US cities have approved similar wage increase measures. In June 2014, Seattle moved to increase its minimum wage to $15 by 2017. Last November, San Francisco voted to increase its minimum wage to $15 by 2018.

Not meaning to sound negative, but the official inflation rate is only a tiny fraction of what the real inflation rate is. Since 1980, the US government has revised the way it determines inflation twenty times, and each time tended to make the official inflation rate smaller. The real inflation rate is about 7.5 percent per year.

Five years from now, that $15 an hour in Los Angeles will only be worth roughly $12 in today’s reality.

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The Fight for $15 Is on the Cusp of Historic Victories

From US Uncut:

“The Fight for $15 made history this week as three of the nation’s largest cities jumped on board. And today, Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren were joined by 16 fellow Senators announcing their support for $15/hour for the first time ever, demanding President Obama take executive action and raise contract workers wages. We will keep everyone updated as these measures progress, but this is a lesson to never underestimate your own power–not for a second. When the Fight for $15 began two years ago, it was dismissed as a utopian pipe-dream. Now, $15/hour is quickly becoming a political reality across the country. This is the power of organized workers. If you support Fight for $15 at your work, in the streets, or behind your keyboard, take a bow. We aren’t going to win, we are winning!”

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Walmart Workers in Los Angeles Engaging in Sit Down Strike

Happening NOW: Dozens of police officers are arresting Walmart workers outside an LA store after they blocked the intersection. This is history in the making yet it’s not on ANY cable new channels.

Walmart workers are carrying on the legacy of Detroit Woolworth women who bravely staged sit-down strikes. Los Angeles Walmart workers earlier today (Nov 14, 2014) held the first big sit-down strike in a Walmart store.

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Los Angeles City Council Votes to Raise Minimum Wage for Hotel Workers to $15 an Hour

By a 12-3 vote, the council approved the rise for hotels with more than 300 rooms on 1 July 2015 and for hotels with more than 150 rooms a year later.

The new wage floor will be one of the highest in the US, but not the highest.

The issue was opposed by the hotel industry, which said it would force worker redundancies. Mayor Eric Garcetti has said he will sign the bill into law.

Under the measure passed on Wednesday, the minimum could be temporarily waived for hotels facing bankruptcy or imminent closure. Hotels with unionized workers could also be exempt if minimum wages are defined in collective bargaining agreements.

It is unclear how many workers the raise will impact. An earlier study, based on a threshold of 125 rooms, estimated the number at 13,000 employees, the Los Angeles Daily News reported.

Because the vote was not unanimous, the council will take a second vote next week in order to pass it formally.

Wednesday’s vote comes after Seattle’s city council voted to raise its hourly minimum to $15 over several years. San Francisco will vote on a similar rise in November.

Mr Garcetti has pledged to push for a city-wide rise to $13.25 by 2017.

California’s current minimum hourly wage is $9, rising to $10 by 1 January 2016.

The vote was the result of a sustained campaign by local community councils, labour unions, and the American Civil Liberties Union, the Los Angeles Times reports.

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