A new year is just around the corner – can you believe it! Time to begin planning for important changes in California wage and hour laws taking effect January 1, 2023.
Minimum Wage:
On January 1, 2023, California’s minimum wage increases to $15.50 per hour. This marks the first increase since 2017 that impacts all employers regardless of the number of workers employed. The increase also impacts pay requirements for exempt workers who must be paid a salary of at least two times the current minimum wage.[i]
Overtime for Agricultural Workers:
Assembly Bill 1066 (2016) created a timetable for agricultural workers to receive overtime pay so that they will gradually receive overtime pay on the same basis as workers in most other industries. Starting January 1, 2023, employers with 25 or fewer employees will be required to pay overtime (1.5x regular rate of pay) after 9 hours per day or 50 hours per workweek.
Employers should begin preparing for these changes by auditing current pay practices internally and with third-party pay providers. A review of exempt positions should also be initiated to ensure compliance with 2023 salary minimums.
Pay Transparency:
California’s SB 1162 revises existing pay transparency laws to require an employer, upon request, to provide to an employee the pay scale for the position in which the employee is currently employed.
Additionally, employers with 15+ employees will also be required to include the pay scale for a position in any job posting – this includes postings managed by third parties.
Record retention provisions within the statute require an employer to maintain records of job title and wage rate history for each employee for the duration of the employment plus three years after the end of the employment.
Employers should begin company-wide revisions to all job descriptions to include pay scale information. This will assure all job posting include the required pay information and will make it easier to provide pay information when requested by current employees. Record retention policies should also be revised to ensure pay transparency records are maintained in accordance with new statutory requirements.
[i] The 2023 salary threshold will be $64,480.00