South San Francisco, CA October 3, 2023 SMC Press Release
Workers will make at least $17.06 an hour in unincorporated San Mateo County starting January 1, 2024, a 3.4 percent increase in minimum wage for areas that range from commercial corridors to coastal farmland.
The minimum wage must be paid to employees who work at least two hours a week, with few exceptions. Businesses of all sizes must pay workers at least $17.06 for all time worked within the geographic boundaries of unincorporated San Mateo County.
This new minimum wage will be $1.06 per hour higher than the state’s minimum wage, which increases to $16 per hour on Jan. 1, 2024.
The California Labor Commissioner’s Office will ultimately enforce the minimum wage. This avoids establishing a new local enforcement agency while providing consistency across jurisdictions as the Labor Commissioner’s mission is to “ensure a just day’s pay in every workplace….” The ordinance also allows for an individual employee to sue his or her employer for not complying.
The County’s minimum wage applies to nearly all workers, regardless of immigration status, across a wide geographic region. This includes North Fair Oaks, home to the bustling Middlefield Road corridor, agricultural land stretching from south of Pacifica to Pescadero, Broadmoor Village in the North County and other unincorporated pockets.
The County’s Executive Office is working to ensure that both employees and employers are aware of the new minimum wage.
The new minimum wage applies to so-called gig workers, employees who get paid tips and both adults and minors. Mirroring the state’s minimum wage requirements, there is an exception for “learners” – who may earn 85 percent of the minimum wage for the first 160 hours of employment, then the full $17.06 per hour. Tips are not included in the hourly wage.
Beginning Jan. 1, 2024, and then annually, the County’s minimum wage will be set based on a formula involving the consumer price index, which tracks the prices of goods and services, and the prior year’s increase.
Please help get the word out to employees and employers – Effective 1/1/2024 Unincorporated San Mateo County