California fast-food workers demanding more pay

Fast-food workers in California are fighting for another wage increase just a few months after the state implemented a controversial law to boost minimum wages from $16 to $20.

Fast-food workers in California are seeking another pay increase mere months after the state implemented a controversial law raising the minimum wage for the industry to $20. 

After its implementation in April, eateries reduced hours, shut down establishments and raised menu prices.

On Wednesday, the California Fast Food Workers Union (CAFFWU), part of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), demanded an increase of another 70 cents per hour by January during the first state’s Fast Food Council, according to KTLA 5 News. 

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"As California’s fast-food industry grows, cooks and cashiers are doubling down on their fight across the state to win safe and healthy stores, stable hours, pay that keeps up with inflation and training to understand their rights on the job," the SEIU said in a statement. 

The CAFFWU became the first-ever statewide fast-food workers union when it was established in February. When it was founded, the group declared it was "hitting the ground running" with three core priorities: fighting for higher wages, advancing new protections against "unfair" firings and ensuring better schedules. 

According to KTLA, increased job stability, fair payment for owed back pay and stable schedules for workers were among the list of demands the group announced Wednesday.

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It is also demanding a thorough investigation into what they claim are widespread "pervasive abuses" in the fast-food industry, including wage theft, harassment, discrimination and hazardous working conditions, KTLA 5 News reported.

The group formed well after Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the legislation, AB 1228, into law in September, effectively boosting the minimum wage for restaurants that have at least 60 locations nationwide, except those that make and sell their own bread, from $16 to $20. This equates to an annual salary of $41,600.

The median fast-food worker in the U.S. earned $13.43 an hour in 2022, while those in California made an average of $16.60 an hour, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. 

In addition to the pay raises, the legislation also established a "Fast Food Council," including representatives for both workers and employers, that can approve further pay increases and set standards for working conditions.

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Newsom signed the legislation, AB 1228, into law in September, saying at the time that "California is home to more than 500,000 fast-food workers who – for decades – have been fighting for higher wages and better working conditions."

After it took effect in April, many restaurants increased prices and cut employee hours, according to a recent report from the Employment Policies Institute. 

About 98% of restaurants surveyed said they have already raised the cost of menu items, and 93% plan to do so next year, according to the EPI. Additionally, 89% reported already reducing the number of employee hours, and 87% plan to do so next year.

FOX Business reached out to the Service Employees International Union for comment.

Reuters contributed to this report.