All California employers should display the new minimum wage poster released by the California Department of Industrial Relations. The poster must be posted next to the Industrial Welfare Commission Wage Order that applies to the employer’s business and serves to notify all employees of the current minimum wage. Specifically, the poster states that the minimum wage for all workers, other than certain fast-food workers subject to Part 4.5.5 of Division 2 of the Labor Code and healthcare workers governed by Labor Code section 1182.14, is now $16.90 an hour. The increase is based on the US Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers and is an increase of 2.49% over the 2025 minimum wage of $16.50. The poster also provides information on increased meal and lodging credits that may be taken against wages when the employer and employee voluntarily agree to the credits in writing.
Interestingly, the 2.49% increase in California’s minimum wage is relatively insignificant when compared to prior increases. Since the minimum wage was established in California in 1916 at $.16 an hour, minimum wages have been increased from year to year by a percentage of 25% or more 9 times. The greatest percentage increase occurred in 1947 when minimum wage was increased from $.45 to $.65 per hour, a 44.44% increase. Ah, the good old days.
A Spanish version of the 2026 minimum wage poster order will soon be available, along with certain other required postings, on the DIR’s website at its Workplace Postings page.
