Here in California we have a patchwork of minimum wages. The state's $10-per-hour rate is already much higher than the national $7.25 rate, but a number of cities have pushed up the baseline even more — such as San Francisco and Los Angeles, where the minimum wage is set to rise to $15 in the next few years. In November, California voters will have a chance to even things out by voting on the Fair Wage Act, which would establish a statewide minimum of $15 by 2021.

Although there's something enticing, on the surface, about having the state catch up to its most politically progressive cities, the Fair Wage Act is likely to have negative consequences for many working-class Californians.

Read on: http://www.latimes.com/opinion/op-ed/la-oe-0318-neumark-fair-wage-act-problems-20160318-story.html