On March 25, 2024, Governor Newsom signed Assembly Bill 610 into law. AB 610 will exempt some businesses from needing to comply with the Fast Recovery Act. The Fast Recovery Act includes an increase in minimum wage for certain fast food establishment employees which will go into effect next week on April 1, 2024.

More specifically, the FAST Recovery Act sets the minimum wage for fast food workers in chains with more than 60 locations across the country at $20/hour. Approximately 500,000 workers will be affected by the wage increase. In addition to the wage increase, the FAST Recovery Act establishes a Fast Food Council that has the authority to establish minimum standards on working hours and working conditions.

AB 610 provides that restaurants that are operated in conjunction with larger enterprises such as airports, hotels, large event centers, theme parks, museums, gambling establishments, corporate campuses, and certain public lands are exempted from the definition of a “fast food restaurant” and therefore do not need to comply with the $20 minimum wage or follow the regulations of the Fast Food Council.

AB 610 went into immediate effect as an urgency statute. The bill passed by a vote of 57-5. It was supported by two union groups: SEIU California and UNITE Here, on the basis that employees in these establishments are often unionized and have access to higher wages than other fast food workers.

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