Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 2646, which raises the minimum wage for ag workers to $19.75 an hour beginning in 2027. (GV Wire Composite)
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Thanks to legislation signed last week by Gov. Gavin Newsom, California farmworkers will make nearly $20 an hour starting the first day of 2027.
Newsom signed Assembly Bill 2646 into law on Sept. 30, raising the ag minimum wage from $16.90 a hour to $19.75 an hour. United Farm Workers and the California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation backed the bill.
Related Story: Ag Minimum Wage Bill on Newsom’s Desk. How Did Fresno Politicians Vote?
About 30 farming and business groups previously urged Newsom to veto the legislation, saying it would raise labor costs to unprofitable levels.
The new law requires the ag minimum wage to be adjusted annually in accordance with cost-of-living adjustment for Social Security benefits.
“Most farmers … cannot absorb or pass along this dramatic wage increase,” said Western Growers President/CEO Dave Puglia. “They have been beaten down by California’s higher operating costs and watched their grocery chain customers choose farmers in other states and countries where the same fresh foods can be grown at a lower cost.”
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