Irvine’s ‘Hero Pay’ for Grocery Workers Begins in March
A pay boost for eligible Irvine grocery workers will go into effect next month after city council on Feb. 26 finalized its hero pay ordinance.
Beginning March 25, grocery store workers at certain stores who work at least two hours per week will receive a mandated $4 per hour increase to their regular pay.
Councilmember Anthony Kuo wanted to postpone finalizing the ordinance until a list of eligible retailers was available for review.
He said it is unclear which stores were included and which were exempt from the ordinance.
The citywide mandate applies to stores with 20 or more employees, or more than 500 workers nationwide. It also applies to stores that are 85,000 square feet or more in size; stores less than 15,000 square feet would be exempt.