Headed to Vetoville: Minimum Wage Hike Passed

The California Legislature has passed a minimum wage hike of $1.00 per hour over the next two years, with increases thereafter according to consumer price indices. AB 1835 (Lieber) and SB 1162 (Cedillo). The minimum wage would increase each July, with half dollar increases in 2007 and 2008, and cost-of-living increases each year thereafter, starting in 2009. Governor Schwarzenegger has already warned that he would veto any bill that includes automatic COLA increases. He previously vetoed two other minimum wage hikes. However, it could be politically dangerous for him to carry out the threat in an election year, given that public opinion polls favor inclusion of the COLA increases. It appears that the governor's strategy will be to activate the previously de-funded Industrial Welfare Commission, which currently has just one board member on a five member board, and have the IWC pass a one dollar wage increase through amendment of existing wage orders.

Comments

[dogfacegeorge]

Can anybody explain to me why the IWC was defunded?