Mountain View's minimum wage will increase to $18.75 an hour in the new year, up 60 cents from the current $18.15 rate.

Since 2019, the city's minimum wage has risen automatically each year to keep pace with regional inflation, leading to the 3.3% increase that will take effect on Jan. 1, 2024. That's down from a 6% increase that the city saw this past January, when the minimum wage went up more than a dollar from $17.10 to $18.15.

The City Council passed an ordinance in 2015 which called for the minimum wage to be raised in stages, from the $10.30 rate that was in effect at the time to $15 an hour on Jan. 1, 2018. From that point on, the ordinance calls for the city's pay floor to get adjusted annually based on any increase in the regional Consumer Price Index, which measures inflation.

Mountain View's minimum wage for 2024 is higher than those of nearby cities, including Sunnyvale ($18.55), Palo Alto ($17.80), Los Altos ($17.75), Cupertino ($17.75) and East Palo Alto ($17.10).

California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a law in September that will increase the minimum wage for fast food workers to $20 in April 2024.

Mountain View's minimum wage rule applies to all employers who are subject to Mountain View's business license tax or who maintain a facility in the city. Any employee, whether an adult or minor, who works two or more hours per week in Mountain View must be paid at least the minimum wage, and tips are not included when calculating an employee's pay, according to the city.

City code also provides protections against retaliation for employees who assert their right to earn the minimum wage. Employees can report violations to the City Manager's office and can file civil lawsuits against their employer, according to the city.

For more information about the minimum wage in Mountain View, visit MountainView.gov/MinWage.