Approximately three million Californians are impacted by minimum wage, which is currently $16 per hour.
A restaurant is considered “fast-food” when you must order and pay for food first. The fast-food industry comprises about 500,000 employees making minimum wage. On April 1, minimum wage for “fast-food employees only” will rise 25% to $20 per hour under AB 1228. The minimum salary will be twice the minimum wage or $83,200 per year. However, only fast-food employees working foremployers having 60 or more locations nationwide are eligible.
This is nothing more than an illegal financial shakedown of McDonald’s and others extorting them to pay 25% higher minimum wages for having locations outside California jurisdiction, which is unconstitutional. These corporate fast-food employers are not receiving equal protection under the law. Our 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution states: “No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States, … nor [shall any State] deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.” This amendment is also known as the Equal Protection Clause.
Earning minimum wage requires only minimum labor effort having no education or skill. Not unlike Social Security or unemployment benefits, minimum wage was never intended to be a “living wage.” A living wage is NOT a right; it is earned. If an individual chooses not to complete high school or not to attend college to gain an essential education, skill, or trade to greatly increase their employability and earning potential, that is their right. Individuals are not entitled to a “living wage” because of their poor life choices.
The State of California has no business rewarding these individuals who are lacking education and skills. If an individual wants a career within the fast-food industry, that’s between them and their employer. If not for minimum wage jobs, many employed in the fast-food industry would be unemployed. Some can’t even speak English.
AB 1228 is sponsored by Assemblyman Chris Holden, (D) of Pasadena. The single largest racial/ethnic group in Pasadena is Hispanic. And 60% of all fast-food workers in California are Hispanic. Unfortunately, AB 1228 wreaks of racism; favoring one ethnic group or nationality over others. I dare not speculate how many are undocumented from Mexico.
The fast-food employers having 60+ locations nationwide have no intention of absorbing additional labor costs. Based upon the total number of fast-food employees, California consumers could potentially pay nearly $4.16 billion dollars in increased minimum wages covered by fast-food consumer price increases. Because these fast-food purchases are taxed at about 8% on average, the total cost to California consumers could be nearly $4.5 billion dollars annually.
Fast-food “value menus” have become a cruel joke. Most senior citizens and low-income families can no longer afford to dine at McDonald’s. All the fast-food restaurants have been raising their prices in anticipation of April 1. The $5 Cravings Box at Taco Bell Paradise is now $10, a 100% increase.
What about the other 2.5 million employees in California making $16 per hour not employed in the fast- food industry? Employees working within retail sales, hospitality, healthcare, and all other labor sectors are not receiving equal protection under the law. What about the employees working at retail corporations such as Walmart, Target, Home Depot, Lowes, and others having 60+ locations nationwide? They are being discriminated for not working in the fast-food industry. And those fast-food employees working for employers having 60+ fast-food locations individually located inside airports and markets are exempt.
Panera Bread, having 60+ locations nationwide, is exempt because they are also a bakery. However, Subway, which bakes its own bread, is not exempt. AB 1228 is chock full of unlawful exemptions and ineligibilities. The AB 1228 Minimum Wage is not based on merit, education, or skill, but ultimately based solely on an individual’s employer having undertones of racial preference.
A Temporary Injunction needs to be filed in Federal Court prior to April 1 to pause implementation of AB 1228 until which time a “Class Action” lawsuit can prove AB 1228 is unconstitutional under the Equal Protection Clause. These plaintiffs should include the 2.5 million Californians working in the non-fast-food industry, those ineligible individuals working in the fast-food industry, and all corporate fast-food employers having 60+ locations nationwide outside California jurisdiction. These plaintiffs are not receiving equal protection. All Californians, individuals and corporate entities, deserve and demand equal protection under the law guaranteed by our 14th Amendment to the United States Constitution.
Marty Piatt is an architect and author living in Paradise.