What does the $15 minimum wage mean for state workers?

Posted: 4/8/2016

In the past decade, state raises ranged from 1 to 3 percent annually. The recent law that Governor Brown signed increasing the state minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2022 is equivalent to a 10 percent increase per year starting in January. This swift increase is bound to have dramatic effects.

Unions, like the AFL-CIO in New York, whose state recently passed a similar minimum wage law, predicts that those making 16, 17 or 18 dollars an hour can start to bargain for 19, 20 and 21 dollars or more. J.J. Jelincic, a CalPERS board member and former CSEA president, said, “When you raise the floor, it creates tremendous pressure for raises at least a few rungs up.”

But what does this mean for state managers and supervisors? Union spokesman for Cal Fire, Terry McHale, says, “The state risks compaction. You can't have the people at the bottom making more than the people directing.” The minimum wage raise may exacerbate compaction issues. Now, it is even more important for the State to tackle salary compaction issues for supervisors, managers, and excluded employees before the situation worsens

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