Thousands of San Francisco workers are starting the new year with a raise.
 
On Jan. 1 the city's minimum wage will rise to $10.24 an hour. That's the highest rate in the country and makes San Francisco the first place in the U.S. to mandate double-digit hourly wages for its lowest-paid workers.
 
For Ace Wiseman, 27, a recent graduate of San Francisco State University who cleans tables for minimum wage in a Sunset District pizzeria, the raise from $9.92 an hour will buy a few more groceries.
 
"It'll be nice…. It all adds up," he said. "I need a second job to start paying off student loans."
 
Many San Francisco employers, however, don't share Wiseman's enthusiasm for the higher pay. San Francisco's rate is well above the California minimum of $8 an hour and federal minimum of $7.25 a hour.