As of January 1, 2017, businesses with 26 or more employees must pay a minimum wage of $10.50 per hour; the rate increases to $15.00 per hour in 2022. Smaller businesses (with 25 or fewer employees) will be required to pay the higher rates starting in 2018. Future increases in the minimum wage will be automatically linked to increases in the consumer price index. (SB 3.) Note also that a number of counties and municipalities (including Los Angeles, San Francisco, Emeryville and Mountain View) have legislated their own scheduled increases in the minimum wage. In addition, the United States Department of Labor has increased the salary and compensation levels necessary for employees to be exempt from the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (eff. Dec. 1, 2016). (81 FR 32391.)