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With two exceptions (New Zealand, 1894; Australia, 1896), no country had a minimum wage law until the 20th Century. Instead, employers paid supposed "just (or fair) wages" on the purported mutual consent of their workers.
With two exceptions (New Zealand, 1894; Australia, 1896), no country had a minimum wage law until the 20th Century. Instead, employers paid supposed "just (or fair) wages" on the purported mutual consent of their workers.
Beginning in the late 1800s, religious and political groups attacked the "just wages" principle on the premise that the vast majority of employees lacked the bargaining power to negotiate a livable wage. In the United States and throughout the industrialized world, factory conditions were also notoriously harsh and workdays long. Not uncommonly at the time, American businesses hired woman and children for lower wages than men, notoriously under horrendous conditions. By 1910, two million children worked up to 20 hours a day in this country. Exhausted, many were killed or injured on the job.
Into the 1920s, American lawmakers sought to improve working conditions in their states. By 1925, fifteen states had passed minimum wage laws, including California at 16 cents an hour. The U.S. Supreme Court later ruled several of the laws unconstitutional. (By 1929, every state had passed laws limiting child labor.)
President Roosevelt's New Deal radically changed the employment landscape. The 1938 Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) established the first federal minimum wage at 25 cents an hour. The law also imposed overtime pay ("time and a half") after a mandated 40-hour regular workweek. The Act also introduced the classification of "exempt (from overtime)" and "non-exempt" employees as well as outlawed many forms of child labor.
By 1943, the Labor Department under Francis Perkins had raised the federal minimum wage to 40 cents an hour. It hit $1.00/hour in 1955. Federal minimum wage has been $7.25 an hour since 2009. Although each U.S. state has the power to set a higher minimum wage than the federal rate, none can set a lower one.
California first set the state minimum wage in 1916, 16 cents/hour. It now stands at $16.50/hour, with higher minimums for certain fast food and health care workers($20.00/hour and $25.00/hour, respectively). Some 40 cities and counties continue to set higher local minimums.
This state's wage regulation began with the 1913 creation of the Industrial Welfare Commission (IWC). Over the decades, the agency has issued 17 industry-specific "wage orders" confirming minimums and setting other wage and working conditions.
Nations without a government-mandated minimum wage include Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Switzerland, Finland, Singapore, and Italy. These countries rely on strong collective bargaining between unions and employers to set wage standards for different industries, ensuring fair pay and worker protections without a statutory wage floor.
For further information, please contact Tim Bowles, Cindy Bamforth or Helena Kobrin.
See also:
● California New Minimum Wages Rates Take effect in July (June 19, 2025)
● Lunch Time Tracking - Preventing a Recordkeeping Business Buster (August 8, 2025)
● Send Away Pay - Mastering "Reporting Time Pay" Compliance (August 7, 2025)
Tim Bowles
October 3, 2025
There are no shortcuts to workplace safety laws.
There are no shortcuts to workplace safety laws.
Following OSHA investigation from a worker's fall through a skylight, the U.S. Department of Labor has assessed $752,846 in penalties against Florida contractor Elo Restoration LLC on ten violations, including no guardrails, safety nets and personal fall arrest systems, as well as no alternative fall protection measures for employees working six feet or more above ground.
Secretary of Labor Lori Chavez-DeRemer stated: "[W]e are committed to doing everything in our power to put the American worker and their safety first. These citations are a stark reminder that workplace safety is non-negotiable, and we will carry out our duty to hold employers accountable when they put lives at risk."
Take-Aways:
Employers must take safety precautions seriously. Providing adequate safeguards against falls is step one for any above-ground work site.
For further information, please contact Tim Bowles, Cindy Bamforth or Helena Kobrin.
See also:
Helena Kobrin
September 26, 2025
The Labor Commissioner's Bureau of Field Enforcement (BOFE) has cited a Koreatown barbeque restaurant $680,000 for widespread wage theft violations.
The Labor Commissioner's Bureau of Field Enforcement (BOFE) has cited a Koreatown barbeque restaurant $680,000 for widespread wage theft violations.
The citation covers failure to pay 48 workers all wages owed, denial of legally required meal and rest breaks, and issuance of incomplete or inaccurate wage statements. Some employees were allegedly required to remain on the premises during lunch breaks, while others worked split shifts without receiving premium pay.
Labor Commissioner Lilia Garcia-Brower noted: "Restaurant workers are often at risk of wage theft, especially when employers ignore laws around pay practices and required break periods. These citations reflect our continued efforts to hold employers accountable and ensure that workers receive the full wages and protections they are legally entitled to regardless of immigration status."
Takeaways:
Employers must follow all wage-and-hour laws, including meal and rest break requirements. Our firm offers proactive, confidential reviews of wage, hour, and documentation practices -- before a government agency initiates its own, less friendly, investigation.
For further information, please contact Tim Bowles, Cindy Bamforth or Helena Kobrin.
See also:
Cindy Bamforth
September 25, 2025
In Ron Chernow's biographyMark Twain, I recently collided with a bit of ancestry. Mr. Chernow cites:
In Ron Chernow's biography Mark Twain, I recently collided with a bit of ancestry. Mr. Chernow cites:
"The Concord (Mass) public library committee deserve well of the public by the action in banishing Mark Twain's new book, 'Huckleberry Finn,' on the ground that it is trashy and vicious ... The trouble with Mr. Clemens is that he has no reliable sense of propriety ..."
Springfield Republican, March 17, 1885
Harsh review, from ... a great, great grandfather!? Samuel Bowles III, the paper's editor, was outspokenly conservative on literature's role in shaping societal norms. Twain's novel challenged his upper crust Northerner ideals, particularly the character of Huck, whose disregard for social conventions and authority struck him as dangerous. There was also the matter of Jim, the runaway slave, portrayed as a human being with dignity, intelligence and emotional depth.
By 1885, the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Amendments had abolished slavery and granted citizenship and voting rights to African Americans. Nice in theory. Yet, those involved in abolitionist movements, including my predecessor Bowles, were still grappling with the full implications of racial equality in practice.
Twain once observed, "It's not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog." 140 years on, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn -- one of the most important works in American literature yet banned from many high school reading lists nationwide -- continues as a foremost fighter for the resolution of our enduring social and racial divisions.
Tim Bowles
September 19, 2025
Please excuse my delay in writing to you. I can't tell you how impressed we were and are with you and the things you stand for. It's a refreshing feeling listening to you and understanding what a real man stands for. In all my travels you are the only person in public life that I inquired about that received nothing but praise. I hope that whatever your ambitions are, they will be fulfilled.
Dear Chet:
Please excuse my delay in writing to you. I can't tell you how impressed we were and are with you and the things you stand for. It's a refreshing feeling listening to you and understanding what a real man stands for. In all my travels you are the only person in public life that I inquired about that received nothing but praise. I hope that whatever your ambitions are, they will be fulfilled.
I am certain you are aware of the success of the dinner, and the thing that impressed me most was that 80% of the people attending were Negroes. Tell Mrs. Bowles the Negro is beginning to take the lead. The dinner, in my opinion, was just an expression of this position. If we have the dinner this year, I hope you'll be able to attend. We will give you a notice in plenty of time this year.
This battle for civil rights is taking a definite turn. It's due to the Chester Bowleses we have around that are not afraid of what the future holds. If we can lick this fear, I am certain we can lick the problem of racial tension.
My best to your family. It's nice knowing people like you. It certainly gives us all a great deal of encouragement.
Sincerely,
[signed]
Jackie Robinson
Note, from Yale University Archives: Robinson had invited Bowles to a NAACP dinner honoring Branch Rickey and Duke Ellington on November 22, 1957, but the former Democratic governor of Connecticut sent his regrets. During his time in office, Bowles became the first governor to abolish segregation in the National Guard and earned a national reputation for his commitment to civil rights causes.
Tim Bowles
September 11, 2025
The Labor Commissioner hascitedeight companies and three individuals $2.1 million in unpaid wages and damages and $165,000 interest for labor law violations on four Los Angeles construction projects.
The Labor Commissioner has cited eight companies and three individuals $2.1 million in unpaid wages and damages and $165,000 interest for labor law violations on four Los Angeles construction projects.
The citation is for failing to pay overtime, paying some less than minimum wage and not providing paid sick leave or proper wage statements. It asserts workers were shortchanged on their pay by splitting it among several corporate entities as an intentional plan to avoid overtime and minimum wage. The average assessment is $18,900 between the 124 workers involved.
The citation can be appealed.
Labor Commissioner Lilia García-Brower stated that: "Employers can't hide behind corporate shell games to cheat workers out of their hard-earned wages and entitled protections. This case is a clear example of how business entities were used to mislead workers and deny them the basic rights and legal protections they deserve under the law.
Take-Aways:
Employers must pay for all hours worked at the legally required rates and observe all other applicable labor laws. They proceed at their peril if they fail to do so.
For further information, please contact Tim Bowles, Cindy Bamforth or Helena Kobrin.
See also:
Helena Kobrin
September 9, 2025
ACal/OSHAinquiry of two California Ranch Foods worker deaths in 2020 found exposure to a hazardous release of fatal nitrogen gas the cause. In settling the LA District Attorney's ensuing criminal charges for lax training and safety procedures, the company must:
A Cal/OSHA inquiry of two California Ranch Foods worker deaths in 2020 found exposure to a hazardous release of fatal nitrogen gas the cause. In settling the LA District Attorney's ensuing criminal charges for lax training and safety procedures, the company must:
Cal/OSHA Chief Debra Lee stated: "When employers fail to protect their workers and it results in a preventable death; California will hold them accountable. We will continue to use every tool available, including criminal referrals to ensure justice is served, and that safety is never optional."
The agency also announced beefing up of investigative personnel as well as a team of attorneys to enable wider prosecution of safety-violating companies.
Take-Aways:
Employers must not skimp on safety, for sake of employee well-being and to protect against such disastrous and expensive consequences.
For further information, please contact Tim Bowles, Cindy Bamforth or Helena Kobrin.
See also:
Helena Kobrin
September 5, 2025
Artificial intelligence defines itself as "the simulation of human intelligence in machines that are programmed to think, learn, and solve problems like humans, enabling them to perform tasks that typically require human reasoning, such as understanding language, recognizing patterns, and making decisions."
Artificial intelligence defines itself as "the simulation of human intelligence in machines that are programmed to think, learn, and solve problems like humans, enabling them to perform tasks that typically require human reasoning, such as understanding language, recognizing patterns, and making decisions."
AI emerges as a workforce tool with the humans having already staked a claim on the do's and don'ts. These include federal and state protections against discrimination over protected characteristics such as gender, race and disability. See, e.g., Boundaries 101, California's Anti-Discrimination Legislation (August 1, 2025).
California's Civil Rights Council (CRC) is out to expand those protections to AI systems in recruitment, hiring and promotion. Inadequately overseen by company management, such streamlined processes can unlawfully discriminate, particularly against qualified individuals with disabilities who may need accommodation.
To this end, the CRC has issued regulations effective October 1, 2025.
Key Provisions:
CRC Councilmember Hellen Hong stated, "We are proud to update these rules to better protect Californians from potential employment discrimination posed by the widespread use of automated decision-making systems."
Civil Rights Department Director Kevin Kish added, "These new regulations on artificial intelligence in the workplace aim to help our state's antidiscrimination protections keep pace."
Take-Aways:
Employers should review all AI tools used in hiring, promotions, and evaluations, require vendors to test for bias, and document compliance efforts.
For further information, please contact Tim Bowles, Cindy Bamforth or Helena Kobrin.
See also:
Cindy Bamforth
August 28, 2025
During the last two years, Columbia University has been regularly in the news for on-campus antisemitic protests. TheEqual Employment Opportunity Commissionresponded withchargesto investigate any resulting civil rights abuses against the institution's Jewish employees.
During the last two years, Columbia University has been regularly in the news for on-campus antisemitic protests. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission responded with charges to investigate any resulting civil rights abuses against the institution's Jewish employees.
In the EEOC's largest public settlement of the last 20 years - and "the most significant settlement for workers of any faith or religion" in the agency's history - Columbia will create a $21 million claims fund for employees who suffered antisemitism after October 7, 2023, to be distributed based on claimants' responses to a confidential questionnaire. The school will also pay a $200 million fine.
Targeting one or more employees with severe or pervasive verbal or physical harassment because of their religion creates a hostile work environment and is discrimination.
The EEOC's Acting Chair, Andrea Lucas, said: "No employee should be subjected to harassment based on their faith . . .."
Take Aways:
Employers must not take religion-based adverse action against any employee or applicant or permit others to do so.
For further information, please contact Tim Bowles, Cindy Bamforth or Helena Kobrin.
See also:
Helena Kobrin
August 22, 2025