Chamber Chat: New labor laws enacted for 2025

The California Legislature put forward a record 5,553 bills last year, with many addressing employment and businesses

California’s two-year legislative session for 2023-2024 ended on August 31, 2024, with a record 5,553 bills introduced by the state legislature. For 2024 specifically, the California Chamber of Commerce tagged 17 bills as “job killers.”

Thankfully, through significant advocacy work by chambers all over the state, only one of those bills was signed into law: Senate Bill 399 (details below). However, there are numerous other bills not labeled as “job killers” signed into law affecting business. Here is a summary.

Minimum Wage — Proposition 32 failed at the ballot box in November. However, the minimum wage is still increasing to $16.50 per hour for both small and large employers in the state. As you probably know by now, fast-food and healthcare employers need to keep their focus on minimum wage laws that took effect mid-year last year that are specific to those industries.