---
title: "Grub Street: California Chick-fil-A gives employees a bigger reason to smile"
url: https://burnaze.com/article/66fc56c1-c7f8-4548-a848-baa71fc1c69e
source: "1851 Franchise"
original_url: https://1851franchise.com/grub-street-california-chick-fil-a-gives-employees-a-bigger-reason-to-smile-2706755
category: "Restaurants"
industry: "Restaurants"
topics: ["Operations"]
published: 2018-06-07T20:15:15.000Z
modified: 2026-11-01T02:33:24.970Z
image: https://newimage.1851franchise.com/cdn-cgi/image/quality=85,format=webp,width=1280,height=720/story/featureImage/a36addc418b7356756cc4bedeec624982986.jpg
---

# Grub Street: California Chick-fil-A gives employees a bigger reason to smile

**TL;DR:** A Chick-fil-A franchisee in Sacramento, CA, has raised employee hourly compensation to $17-$18, above the California minimum wage of $11. Chick-fil-A supports the franchisee's decision to provide a 'livable wage' to attract long-term employees.

*originally published in 1851 Franchise on 2018-06-07. [Read the original](https://1851franchise.com/grub-street-california-chick-fil-a-gives-employees-a-bigger-reason-to-smile-2706755).*

## Story

According to Grub Street and ABC 10 News, the famously friendly chicken chain, Chick-fil-A, is in support of one franchisee’s decision to raise employees hourly compensation to well above minimum wage. This week the Chick-fil-A located off Madison Avenue in Sacramento, CA, started paying its employees $17 to $18 an hour. Behind this drastic change is a franchise owner, Eric Mason.

Mason is very hands-on when it comes to running his business and he believes that investing in his employees and providing them with a “livable wage” will attract individuals looking for a “long-term opportunity.” Prior to this wage, adjustment employees were being paid $12.50 to $13 an hour and the minimum wage in California is currently $11 an hour.

Reported by Grub Street, Chick-fil-A supports Mason’s choice to increase compensation for his “hospitality specialists” and is happy to let him advertise the starting wage. Chick-fil-A continues to be one of the industry’s top performers in the fast-food industry while still remaining committed to keeping its restaurants closed on Sundays.

## Entities

- 1851 Franchise (publication)
- Restaurants (sector)
- California (location)
- Chick-fil-A (company)
- minimum wage (topic)
- ABC (company)
- employee compensation (topic)
- franchisee decision (topic)
- livable wage (topic)

---
Originally reported by 1851 Franchise (https://1851franchise.com/grub-street-california-chick-fil-a-gives-employees-a-bigger-reason-to-smile-2706755). Summarized by Burnaze (https://burnaze.com/article/66fc56c1-c7f8-4548-a848-baa71fc1c69e).