Pizza Hut to lay off thousands of California delivery drivers in 2024
Operators are blaming a new state law that will raise employee wages to $20 an hour starting in April 2024.
LOS ANGELES -- Thousands of pizza delivery drivers in California are facing layoffs as two major Pizza Hut franchisees are eliminating their delivery service.
The layoffs will affect 1,200 workers of restaurants in Orange, Los Angeles, Riverside, San Bernardino and Ventura counties. They'll also impact more than 800 workers at Pizza Hut locations in Sacramento, Central California, Southern Oregon, and the Reno-Tahoe area, according to reports.
Operators are blaming a new state law that starts in April that boosts the fast-food minimum wage by $4 to $20 per hour.
The law, known as Assembly Bill 1228, was introduced by Assemblyman Chris Holden, D-Pasadena, and signed into law by Gov. Gavin Newsom in September.
After the layoffs, customers will need to use third-party delivery apps like DoorDash, GrubHub and UberEats for pizza and food deliveries.
ABC7 in Los Angeles reached out to Yum! Brands, which owns Pizza Hut and other fast food companies, for a comment but has not yet received a response.
