Bottoms Up (to $15 eventually)

University of California President Janet Napolitano announced today (July 22) that the minimum wage for its workers — both direct and service contract employees — will be raised to $15 an hour over the next three years.  In addition, she directed that all contractors doing business with UC comply with government and university workplace laws and policies.

The Fair Wage/Fair Work Plan, unveiled at today’s Board of Regents meeting, requires that all University of California employees hired to work at least 20 hours a week be paid at least $15 per hour over the course of the next three years. The mandated minimum will increase to $13 an hour on Oct. 1, 2015, to $14 an hour on Oct. 1, 2016, and to $15 an hour on Oct. 1, 2017. The California state minimum wage currently stands at $9 an hour, and is set to increase to $10 an hour on Jan. 1, 2016...

Full media release at http://universityofcalifornia.edu/press-room/uc-president-announces-15hour-minimum-wage

Regents meetings, which often feature "sensitive" matters of high executive pay, are politically a good place to announce pay raises at the bottom. (But we're sure no one at UCOP thought of that political angle, especially former Governor Napolitano!)