Poverty

More than half a million fast food workers, mostly minorities and women, will earn higher minimum wage because Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a fast food bill Thursday. But some say that’s not a living wage.

After Congress did not extend a pandemic-era tax credit, California's poverty rate for children rose from 7.5% to nearly 17% in one year. The false narratives that describe people in poverty often don't reflect research or reality, and further harm them by stalling policy solutions.

Many farmworkers in Coachella Valley lack legal status as citizens and don't qualify for most federal and state disaster aid. Even a new $95 million storm assistance program for immigrants that Governor Gavin Newsom recently touted is out of reach because it pertains to the winter and spring storms and floods.

Gov. Gavin Newsom promised $95 million would help undocumented workers rebuild after winter storms and floods. Months later, $18 million is being doled out and there are translation issues with the state’s website.

Tens of thousands of low-income Californians lose their vehicles simply because they cannot afford to pay for parking tickets. Cities don't generate revenue from so-called poverty tows, either. A legislative proposal would reform the practice.

A new study shows women without legal residency face a lopsided pay gap. In California they take home 44 cents for every dollar that white, non-Latino men make and 87 cents for every dollar undocumented men make. Would raising the minimum wage help?

At the state Capitol, legislators meet in specific groups on environmental issues, mental health and renters’ rights and also gather around their common identities. As my colleague Sameea Kamal reported recently, there are more than 20 caucuses at the Legislature. Add another one — the End Poverty caucus. As first reported by Politico, it is […]

A union says hotel workers making $20 to $25 an hour aren’t earning enough to live near where they work.

Providers say home daycare businesses may need to close if the state continues paying too little in child care subsidies.

Planada, a small mostly Latino town, was among the first to be flooded in January. Researchers say 83% of families suffered economic losses.