But for some -- and not just fast food franchise owners -- the newly raised bar for compensation also marks a pivotal point for restaurants to remain competitive in an already difficult post-pandemic landscape. The industry with famously thin margins is once again being pushed to make monetary and operational adjustments to stay afloat, all without compromising consumer expectations.
While her restaurant group doesn't meet the same volume as restaurants in the LSR category mandated in the new law, the daughter of first-generation Mexican American parents told "GMA" frankly that "$20 an hour now it's not competitive -- it's just the starting point now for most restaurants that are competing for the same talent pool."
On top of the immediate public-facing challenges that come from this all-at-once financial change, restaurant owners are also left to juggle rising food costs and other variables in the supply chain that can greatly impact a restaurant's overhead and bottom line. Even Michaela Mendelsohn, who was appointed to Gov. Gavin Newsom's Fast Food Council last fall before AB 1228 was signed into law, is seeing the immediate financial impact on her restaurants.