A historic achievement
Governor Newsom has signed SB 525, a landmark healthcare worker minimum wage that will lead to wage increases for more than 400,000 healthcare workers in California. It is the first $25 minimum wage in the country and also the first healthcare-specific minimum wage.
A real step forward in addressing short staffing in our facilities
For all the dedicated healthcare workers who are struggling to pay bills and support themselves and their families, higher pay will make a huge difference in their lives. Raising wages means that workers who were considering leaving can stay and new workers will be attracted by the higher base pay.
SEIU-UHW members made this happen
Starting in 2022, SEIU-UHW members led the way in pushing for a higher minimum wage for healthcare workers. We started by collecting signatures for city ballot initiatives and passed healthcare minimum wage laws in 5 cities. When four of them were put on hold by hospital executive-led referendum efforts, we took it to the state legislature with a statewide bill. Now our bill has become state law!