July California Minimum Wage Increases

On January 1, 2025, California increased their state minimum wage to $16.50 per hour for all employers, regardless of size. While California may have one of the highest state-mandated minimum wages, voters rejected the November 2024 ballot measure to raise the minimum wage to $18 an hour. Still, several cities and counties have chosen to enact their own minimum wages that are higher than the state’s current minimum. 

Effective July 1, 2025, the following counties/localities have raised their minimum wage: 

This list does not include any localities that already have a minimum wage higher than the state’s but that did not increase it this year. Below is a full list of areas that pay above the state’s minimum wage. 

These minimum wages do not supersede local industry-specific minimum wage requirements that may be higher. Some industries that pay above California’s minimum wage include: 

• Fast food:

  • Fast food workers at chain restaurants with at least 60 locations nationwide – minimum wage of $20/hour 

• Hotel & airport:  

  • Los Angeles has started a phased increase for hotel and airport workers, eventually reaching $30 per hour by July 2028. As of July 1, 2025, the minimum wage is $22.50/hour, with a $2.50 increase each year. 
  • West Hollywood has raised the minimum wage for hotel workers in 2025 to $20.22/hour 
  • Long Beach raised the minimum wage for hotel workers on July 1, 2025 to $25/hour. 

• Healthcare:

  • The minimum wage for healthcare employees increases annually on a multi-tiered schedule. This is in accordance with Senate Bill (SB) 525 signed by Governor Newsom in 2023, which established 5 separate minimum wage schedules for covered health care employees. The timing of these minimum wage increases depends upon the type of employer. For 2025, the following categories of health care employees saw increases:
    • Rural independent covered facilities: $18.63 
    • Hospitals with 90% or more of their patients paid for by Medicare or Medi-Cal: $18.63 
    • Independent Hospitals with 75% or more of their patients paid for by Medicare or Medi-Cal: $18.63 
    • Covered Health Care Facilities run by small counties with fewer than 250,000 people: $18.63 
    • Hospitals or Integrated Health Systems with 10,000 or more full-time employees, including skilled nursing facilities operated by these employers: $24 
    • Covered Health Care Facilities run by large counties with more than five million people as of January 1, 2023: $24 
    • Dialysis clinics or hospitals with 10,000 or more full-time employees: $24 

• “Health care employee” is a broad term that includes not just those providing medical care, but also employees providing support, such as janitors, guards, and gift shop workers. 

• Some types of healthcare employers (e.g., Covered Health Care Facilities run by Medium Sized Counties (250,000 to five million people as of 1/1/23)) pay above the state minimum wage but have not had a minimum wage increase for 2025. These facilities instead have one scheduled for 2026.