Get Ready for California’s Statewide and Local Minimum Wage Hikes

California’s stair-step climb to a $15 minimum wage continues. Effective Jan. 1, 2021, the minimum wage for employers with 25 employees or less will increase to $13.00 per hour, and for employers with 26 or more employees, the minimum wage will increase to $14.00 per hour. Employers must remember this increase also affects minimum salary requirements for exempt employees.

While some local minimum wages increase mid-year, many others also increase on Jan. 1 at the same time the state’s increases take effect.

For example, in the cities of Sonoma and Hayward, the minimum wage for employers with 25 employees or less will increase to $14.00 per hour, and for employers with 26 or more employees, the minimum wage will increase to $15.00 per hour, effective Jan. 1, 2021.

Likewise, the city of Novato’s minimum wage for employees with 25 employees or less will increase to $14.00 per hour, and for employers with 26 to 99 employees, the minimum wage will increase to $15.00 per hour as of Jan. 1. For employers with 100 employees or more, the minimum wage in the city of Novato will increase to $15.24 per hour, effective Jan. 1, 2021.

The following local minimum wages go into effect on Jan. 1, 2021, regardless of employer size:

City	Required Minimum Wage as of Jan. 1
Belmont	$15.90 per hour
Cupertino	$15.65 per hour
Daly City	$15.00 per hour
El Cerrito	$15.61 per hour
Half Moon Bay	$15.00 per hour
Los Altos	$15.65 per hour
Menlo Park	$15.25 per hour
Oakland	$14.36 per hour
Petaluma	$15.20 per hour
Palo Alto	$15.65 per hour
Redwood City	$15.62 per hour
Richmond	$15.21 per hour
San Carlos	$15.24 per hour
San Diego	$14.00 per hour
San Jose	$15.45 per hour
San Mateo	$15.62 per hour
Santa Clara	$15.65 per hour
Santa Rosa	$15.20 per hour
South San Francisco	$15.24 per hour
Sunnyvale	$16.30 per hour