On Wednesday, the Los Angeles City Council approved an ordinance that would raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2020. The Mayor has yet to sign the bill but he is expected to do so.

Eric Garcetti, would require businesses with more than 25 employees to gradually increase wages to meet a $15 hourly pay level by 2020, while smaller businesses would have an extra year to comply with each step.

"Today is a great day for Los Angeles and all the people who work hard to make our city a vibrant place to live and work," said Rusty Hicks of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor.

"After months of public debate and study, the City Council's vote puts us one step away from changing the lives of hundreds of thousands of hardworking Angelenos," he said. "Though there is still work to be done, all of us in Los Angeles will see the fruits of raising the wage in L.A.”

Will businesses stick around Los Angeles under hostile free market conditions? An increase in overhead generally leads to price hikes and/or layoffs.

The minimum wage in Los Angeles is currently $9 an hour, whereas the federal minimum wage is $7.25