California Gov Gavin Newsom signed a bill on Friday that raised the minimum wage for healthcare workers to $25 per hour. The bill was originally proposed by State Senator Maria Elena Durazo from Los Angeles.
Those that supported the bill claimed that it will help to ease workforce shortages because of what happened during the pandemic. There are problems with a bill like this which includes costing the state of California $1 Billion a year.
Gov Newsom’s office was not directly involved in the negotiations for the minimum wage increase for healthcare workers, but was in support of it.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed a closely watched bill that would raise the minimum wage for California health care workers to $25 per hour.
The proposal, Senate Bill 525 from Los Angeles lawmaker María Elena Durazo, will eventually raise hourly wages for health care workers in most settings to $25. Proponents have argued that higher wages are crucial for easing a workforce shortage that worsened during the pandemic as grueling conditions caused many to quit their jobs.
But until Friday, it was unclear to even those close to the deal whether Newsom would sign it. The governor’s office was not directly involved in the health care wage negotiations between hospitals, clinics and unions — unlike with a fast food labor deal that Newsom helped broker — and he routinely cites cost pressures in his veto messages. An analysis of an earlier version of the bill estimated it would cost the state $1 billion annually.
The labor union SEIU is a proponent of the minimum wage increase for healthcare workers. They have been working for years to help pass a bill of this nature.
If Gov Newsom’s goal is to help with the workforce shortage, a minimum wage increase may not be the solution. First and foremost, the shortage was created by the government because of the vaccine mandates. Employees who refused the vaccine were fired from their jobs.
Secondly, it can affect the hospitals and businesses that employ these workers and may even take away the incentive to go for more lucrative training for pay raises and more advanced jobs in the field.
In September, The Gateway Pundit reported that Gov Gavin Newsom signed a bill to give fast food workers a $20 an hour minimum wage.
Gov Newsom was involved with the negotiations for the fast food minimum wage increase.
The law will go into effect in April, giving fast food workers in the state one of the highest minimum wages in the entire nation.
