Sacramento, California - Fast food workers in California have scored a huge win after companies and labor unions reached a deal for a $20-an-hour minimum wage starting in April!

Fast food companies have agreed to remove a referendum from the 2024 ballot which sought to repeal a law to improve California workers' wages and working conditions, the Los Angeles Times reported.

The agreement appears to have resolved a conflict that has been raging since the passage of Assembly Bill 257, the Fast Food Accountability and Standards Recovery Act.

The law, signed by Governor Gavin Newsom in September 2022, was set to raise the minimum wage for fast food workers from $15.50 to $22 an hour and create a 10-member Fast Food Council tasked with establishing minimum standards in the industry.

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Major restaurant chains responded by launching a campaign to prevent AB 257 from taking effect, claiming they would have to raise food prices in order to cover wage increases for workers.

They ended up gathering enough signatures to put the issue before California voters as a ballot measure.

Months later, the companies have agreed to boost the minimum wage to $20 an hour for workers at chains with more than 60 locations across the country, starting in April. They have also consented to the formation of a council of representatives for workers and companies to consider future pay increases.

In exchange, unions have pledged to stop efforts to hold companies liable for labor violations committed by franchise owners.

The agreement, set to last until 2029, also prevents localities from passing additional wage increases regionally for fast food workers.