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California Capitol is observed countless conflicts between economic interests, but few are in line with the intensity of a duel between the fast food industry and the unions, which at first glance ended two years ago with compromise legislation, which raises the minimum wage to $ 20.
Since the higher salary came into force last year, hostile factions have argued whether the increase failed workers without significant negative impact, as the government Gavin Newpom and other defenders claim, or reduced employment and raised prices as the industry maintains.
The debate is picking up steam like Fast food tipentity designed to control the conditions of pay and work, is considering new trade union efforts To increase the minimum wage even higher.
First, a short story.
In 2022 the legislature adopted and Newsom signed a Lawmaker This would raise the minimum salary for fast food to $ 22 per hour and announced that fast food franchises were only subsidiaries of the parent chains, not independently owned by the business.
The industry did not like the increase in salaries, but he hated the challenge to the franchise system and answered with a referendum on the annulment of the law. However, a multimilliona voting battle was prevented in 2023 with Compromise legislationS It imposes a minimum salary of $ 20 and canceled the problem of the franchise condition, but reserved the creation of the fast food advice. The new salary came into force last April and the conflict continued with the ongoing debate on the effects of the law.
Proponents have cited numerous studies of academics in HavardUC San Francisco and UC Berkeley claim that pay raise has been minimal, if any, negative effects.
“We find that policy has increased the average hourly wage by a remarkable 18 percent and yet it has not reduced employment,” a exploration The UC Berkeley Institute for Research and Employment Institute is over. “Policy has increased prices about 3.7 percent, or about 15 cents in a $ 4 hamburger (once), contrary to the claims for the industry for greater increases.”
In October, Newsom announced This study confirms that our commitment to fair salaries for fast food workers not only raises working families but also strengthening our economy. The data show that investing in workers is beneficial for everyone – workers, companies and our country as a whole. “
However, both Berkeley’s training center and Harvard Social Policy Center Malcolm Wiener are leaning on the left, and the fast food industry rejects their training as prejudiced.
In January a coalition in an industry called Save local restaurants Send a letter to NEWSOM, declaring that “an additional salaries increase will again cancel our livelihood and crippled thousands of small business owners like us who are already struggling to survive within a minimum salary of $ 20/hour, our customers and our employees. ”
On Monday the industry has released an impact of an impactConducted by Berkeley Research Group, a private consulting firm. He found that wage increases had reduced fast food employment, shorten working hours, forced fast food franchises to use more automation, and resulted in significantly higher prices for consumers.
Both Pro and CON studies use approximately the same employment data generated by the Federal Bureau of Labor Statistics. The Agency does not collect specific data on fast food chains affected by a minimum wage legislation, so rival researchers had to extrapolate what they claim to be valid statistical foundations.
The situation is calling for some really objective research on this experiment in the salaries -specific industry. It can be expanded to other economic sectors, but without some reliable effects of effects, all participants are filmed in the dark. This will be politics, not a fact that manages the results.
