On May 1, 2015, the minimum wage within the city limits of San Francisco will rise to $12.25 per hour.  All employers, regardless of where their facilities are located, must pay this new minimum wage for all hours worked to any adult or minor employee who (1) performs at least two hours of work a week within the geographic boundaries of the San Francisco city limits, and (2) is otherwise qualified to receive the state minimum wage.  The employee need not live in San Francisco in order to be entitled to this new minimum wage.  The law exempts only youths under 18 in government-subsidized training programs or people over 55 at some government-subsidized nonprofits. 

The increase is the result of a November 2014 voter-approved ballot measure, Proposition J, which gradually raises the San Francisco minimum wage according to the following schedule:

• May 1, 2015: $12.25 per hour
• July 1, 2016: $13 per hour
• July 1, 2017: $14 per hour
• July 1, 2018: $15 per hour
• July 1, 2019 and each year thereafter: Increases according to the consumer price index

San Francisco’s current minimum wage of $11.05 per hour, which went into effect on January 1, 2015, is well above the current national minimum wage of $7.25 per hour and the state minimum wage of $9.00 per hour.  (The statewide rate is scheduled to climb to $10 in 2016.) 

San Francisco employers should plan to update payroll systems and paystubs to reflect this change in hourly and overtime rates for any employees impacted by this change.  Starting May 1, 2015, San Francisco employers are also required to post the new minimum wage notice, which is available on the Office of Labor Standards Enforcement’s website.