Berkeley minimum wage in 2026

Berkeley’s minimum wage is set by city law, its Minimum Wage Ordinance. The city’s page says it “applies to all employees who work at least two hours in the geographical limits of Berkeley, regardless of where the employer is located or where the employee lives,” and “to both for-profit and non-profit employers.” The ordinance itself counts work of “at least two (2) hours” “in a calendar week,” for someone who is owed the state minimum wage (Berkeley Municipal Code § 13.99.030). The rate can rise each July 1. The city’s official notice says “On July 1 of each year, the Minimum Wage will increase by the prior calendar year’s increase in the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) for the San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward area.”

Berkeley also has a Living Wage Ordinance. The city says vendors it pays above set amounts “must pay a living wage (set by the City).” This page does not cover it.

The city’s Labor Standards and Enforcement Program takes complaints. If your employer “is paying you less than the Berkeley Minimum Wage,” the city says “you can submit a complaint with the City of Berkeley.” Fill out the city’s complaint form, then email it to LaborStandards@berkeleyca.gov or mail it, or visit the program’s office at 2180 Milvia Street, 2nd Floor, Berkeley, CA 94704. The program’s phone number is (510) 981-5400. The city says “Complaints may be submitted by employees or any other person,” and “It is unlawful for employers to retaliate against any employee who asserts their right to the minimum wage.” The city does not enforce state rules such as overtime and breaks: it says it “does not administer or enforce national or state labor standards such as unpaid overtime, break, or lunch periods.” The page is the city’s Workforce Standards and Enforcement page.

Rates by type of work

Who the city rate covers

Berkeley sets its own minimum wage by city law. State law makes a local minimum wage binding. The Labor Code says the minimum wage “fixed by the commission or by any applicable state or local law, is the minimum wage to be paid to employees, and the payment of a lower wage than the minimum so fixed is unlawful” (Labor Code § 1197).

Berkeley’s own law decides who it covers; the Berkeley details above quote the city’s summary of it. Check Berkeley’s page, linked above.

The state minimum wage applies too. When the two differ, the Labor Commissioner says that “if a local entity (city or county) has adopted a higher minimum wage, employees must be paid the local wage where it is higher than the state or federal minimum wage rates.”

Some jobs have a higher state minimum wage. The Labor Commissioner says “There is a higher minimum wage for Fast Food Workers, effective April 1, 2024, and a higher minimum wage for certain Health Care Workers.” This page covers the city rate and the state rules that apply everywhere.

Tips and the minimum wage

Tips do not count toward the minimum wage in California. This is state law, so it applies in Berkeley.

• Your employer may not “require an employee to credit the amount, or any part thereof, of a gratuity against and as a part of the wages due” (Labor Code § 351(a)).
• Your employer may not “collect, take, or receive any gratuity or a part thereof,” or take money from your wages because of tips.
• “Every gratuity is hereby declared to be the sole property of the employee or employees to whom it was paid, given, or left for.”
• Tips paid by credit card must be paid to you in full, “without any deductions for any credit card payment processing fees,” and “not later than the next regular payday” after the customer paid.

Since January 1, 2026, the law also says “The Labor Commissioner may investigate and issue a citation or file a civil action for gratuities taken or withheld” (§ 351(b)).

If you’re paid less

Paying less than the minimum wage that applies to you “is unlawful” (Labor Code § 1197). An agreement to work for less does not cancel unpaid minimum wages. The law on recovering them applies “notwithstanding any agreement to work for a lesser wage” (§ 1194(a)).

1. Track your hours. The Labor Commissioner says to “Write down the time you begin and end work every day,” along with your breaks and total hours.
2. Keep every pay stub. Compare your hourly pay with the Berkeley rate for the dates you worked.
3. Check with the city. The Berkeley details near the top of this page link the city’s page and name its enforcement office.
4. File a wage claim with the state. The Labor Commissioner’s Office says “Workers in California have the right to file a wage claim when their employers do not pay them the wages or benefits they are owed.” Its page says to file “Within three years for violations of minimum wage.” See its How to File a Wage Claim page.
5. Know that complaining is protected. An employer may not fire or retaliate against you because you “made a written or oral complaint that they are owed unpaid wages” (Labor Code § 98.6(a)).

This page covers state law and the city’s rate. It is legal information, not legal advice.

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