Southern California fast food jobs hit record high despite minimum wage hike

Southern California’s fast food restaurants saw record employment in June despite a huge jump in the minimum wage for the industry’s largest chains.

To measure hiring in the fast food job market in this $20-an-hour minimum wage era, my trusty spreadsheet looked at jobs data for “limited-service” restaurants for Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties.

Employment Development Department numbers show the four-county region had 361,500 fast food workers in June – an all-time staffing high for these dining establishments that employ 4.5% of all Southern California’s workers.

The quirk in this jobs tale is that as of April 1, fast food’s larger chains had to start paying workers at least $20 an hour, compared with a $16 minimum for other industries. Let’s politely say industry leaders are not happy.

Critics of the increase say the wage hike will push menu prices higher and force operators to trim staff and/or hours worked. Plus, there are fears that salaries across the restaurant industry will jump due to stiff competition for workers.

Well, job stats show fast-food employment rose by 400 in June and is up 7,600 since March – just before the wage hike. Plus, staffing’s up 3,000 in a year.

Please note, these job stats are not adjusted for seasonal swings. Historically speaking, though, fast food bosses added 3,200 local workers in June on average since 2010 and added 4,900 in the March-to-June period.

So, June’s fast-food hirings look historically slow, but the spring was relatively normal – despite the wage controversy.

Let’s compare fast food to the region’s full-service eateries. These dining options also hit record staffing in June at 294,500 – up 2,000 in a month, up 8,800 since March, and up 4,500 in a year.

If restaurant staffing aligns with diner demands, eating out in Southern California remains popular, whether it’s quick-serve joints or sit-down establishments.

Other industries

Ponder the restaurant industry’s fate vs. other employers, and you see a growing regional economy. That’s usually good news for dining out.

Across all industries in Southern California, 8 million people were working in June. That’s up 22,800 in a month, up 72,200 since March, and up 115,100 in a year.

So over 12 months, there’s been 1.5% more Southern California jobs overall vs. fast food’s 2.2% expansion. And ponder that staffs at full-service eateries increased at a 2.8% pace.

Now, let’s look at another hospitality industry. The region’s hotels employed 92,800 in June – up 1,100 in a month, up 3,800 since March, and up 2,800 in a year. So, over 12 months, that’s 3.1% growth.

Geographically speaking

Fast food’s hiring patterns are by no means universal.

Industry-wide job growth doesn’t mean every operator is financially fit in this wage-hike period. Nor should anybody assume that every worker is benefitting from the new pay rules. And you wonder how long consumers can accept pricier dining.

Plus, three months of data is by no means the final verdict – yet it does hint the worst-case scenario isn’t playing out.

Take a peek at jobs at limited-service eateries, sliced by the region’s metropolitan areas, to see variations in hiring patterns …

Los Angeles County: June saw a record 197,800 fast-food workers – up 200 in a month, up 4,400 since March, and up 4,300 in a year. Fast food equals 4.3% of all LA jobs.

Inland Empire: 89,500 fast-food workers in June – up 200 in a month, up 1,900 since March, but off 1,300 in a year. Fast food equals 5.2% of all IE jobs.

Orange County: 74,200 fast-food workers in June – flat for the month, up 1,300 since March, and flat for the year. Fast food equals 4.3% of all OC jobs.

Jonathan Lansner is the business columnist for the Southern California News Group. He can be reached at jlansner@scng.com