Here's what might happen after California raises fast-food wages to $20, from higher burger and pizza prices to better wages for retail workers

Tech Insider
McDonald's worker in Mims, Florida, stands behind the cashier desk to serve a customer
McDonald's thinks it is better place to absorb forced wage increases in California than other chains.

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A boomer couple 'couldn't get out of California fast enough' and moved to Kansas for retirement. Living costs are cheaper, and making friends is much easier.

Tech Insider : Economy
Aerial view of Kansas City, Missouri, skyline at dusk, viewed from Penn Valley Park.
Kansas City.

Mihai_Andritoiu/Shutterstock

I left California for Las Vegas. Even after a $39,000 pay cut, my house is bigger, my 401(k) contributions went up, and the quality of my life improved.

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A collage of a headshot of Alli Peck, a woman with short brown hair, and a photograph of Peck with her husband in front of Las Vegas Ballpark.
Alli Peck moved to Las Vegas and took a pay cut of $39,000.

Alli Peck

Gov. Newsom argues Panera is not exempt from California's wage increase after backlash over a franchisee owner's campaign donations

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Panera Bread logo on sign outside California store
Governor Gavin Newsom is getting heat because of his ties to Panera restaurant owner.

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Meet the typical Midwest mover, a Gen Zer from California who's paying under $1,500 a month in rent

Tech Insider : Economy, Economy
Aerial view of Woodward Avenue in Detroit, Michigan.
Aerial view of Woodward Avenue in Detroit, Michigan.

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Conservative activists are taking another swing at trying to recall Gavin Newsom, arguing that he's 'abandoned' California to 'advance his presidential ambitions'

Tech Insider : Politics
California Gov. Gavin Newsom.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom.

Noam Galai via Getty Images

Tourists are paddle boarding and frolicking in one of Earth's driest locations after record rains

Tech Insider : Travel
Badwater Basin in Death Valley in February 2024.
Death Valley National Park in February 2024.

DAVID SWANSON/Getty Images

I bought a California ghost town for $1.4 million. Living here gets lonely — but I've found my purpose.

Tech Insider
Brent Underwood Cerro Gordo
Brent Underwood bought the old mining town of Cerro Gordo in 2018.

Brent Underwood

Meet the typical mover to Austin: Single millennial renters making $76,000 a year coming from California

Tech Insider : Economy
A crowd in front of Austin's capitol building.
A crowd gathers outside of Austin's capitol building.

Suzanne Cordeiro/Getty images

California's $20 minimum wage for fast-food workers could make burgers and chicken so expensive that people just buy more groceries instead

Tech Insider
Men eating hamburger and fries from fast-food joint
Californian diners may ditch fast food and choose to cook at home instead.

Jonathan Knowles/Getty Images

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