SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California and New York are poised to become the highest-paid minimum-wage states in the nation after governors for both reached deals with lawmakers to raise the lowest amount a worker can be paid to a record-shattering $15 an hour.

Gov. Jerry Brown said he will sign California’s new minimum-wage bill Monday in Los Angeles after it passed the Legislature on Thursday.

Across the country in New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo reached a tentative deal late Thursday with his state’s top lawmakers to also raise his state’s minimum wage to $15.

The actions in two of the nation’s most labor-friendly states come as the income divide has become a key issue across the U.S. in this presidential election year.

President Barack Obama has proposed an increase to the federal minimum wage, and the issue has gotten attention in the Democratic presidential primaries.

“California takes a massive leap forward today in the fight to rebalance our nation’s economy,” said Art Pulaski, executive secretary-treasurer of the California Labor Federation.

California’s current $10 an hour minimum wage is tied with Massachusetts for the highest among states. Only Washington, D.C., at $10.50 per hour is higher. New York’s minimum wage is $9.

Democrats who control both legislative chambers in California hailed the increase as a boon to more than 2 million workers. Brown, also a Democrat, said it proves the nation’s largest state can get things done and help people get ahead.