One Fair Wage
OUR STATEMENT:
"MRU supports wage progress and worker’s equity, but does not support the One Fair Wage initiative as written. Massachusetts is a state with a wide range of local economies. Doing business in Chicopee or Lee is far different than doing business in Boston's seaport. In order for all Massachusetts restaurants, and the local communities they support, to thrive, legislation must take regional economic differences into consideration."
Once again, petitioners are bombarding people with a seemingly simple question, “Would you please add your signature if you feel that people deserve to make minimum wage?” Seems pretty straight-forward, right? We all want everyone to be paid a fair wage. But that’s not the full story.
Many people are surprised to find out that tipped employees across the Commonwealth make a sub-minimum wage of $6.75 an hour. Massachusetts is one of the last remaining states using a tip credit provided by the state which allows employers to supplement a tipped employee’s wage with tips provided by the patrons. This tip credit ensures that all tipped employees are making AT LEAST the minimum wage and, in most cases, MORE than minimum wage.
MRU started a conversation almost two years ago about the fairness of wages between the front and back of house. Massachusetts is again one of two states that does not allow ANY tip sharing with back of house (kitchen) staff. We started to explore how to amend existing legislation that would allow us to create structure in our industry to make sure that our employees were all being paid appropriately. We felt that we were on the right path. A short time later, we were asked to consider backing One Fair Wage’s ballot question.
In the simplest form of explanation, One Fair Wage proposes that over the course of five years, the sub-minimum wage would increase annually until it reaches the full minimum wage. That would mean that today’s $6.75 would increase annually towards reaching full minimum wage of $15 an hour. What this ALSO means is that the tip credit would annually decrease until it no longer exists at the end of five years.
This is what it would mean for locally owned restaurants across the state:
According to the OFW ballot question, we will not be able to share tips with back of house employees until everyone is paid full minimum wage.
Full minimum wages for all employees will have to come from the employer with no help from the current tip credit provided by the state.
Quick Math:
$15 Current Minimum Wage - $6.75 Sub Minimum Wage = $8.25 / hour
$8.25 x an average 8 hour shift = $66 per employee
10 employees times x $66 = $660 A DAY
$660 x a 2 week pay period = $1,320 per pay period
$1,320 x a 26 pay periods annually = $34,320 additional revenue
The need for that amount in additional revenue will most likely result in the increase in menu prices. We’re already starting to see this happen in states that have already adopted wage legislation like the one proposed.
Increased prices may result in lack of business which could ultimately lead to closure.
A looming question is whether or not patrons will still tip with knowledge that their server/bartender is making minimum wage which will mean massive decreases in many incomes.
This could result in many in our industry leaving for better paying jobs when we are already facing labor shortages across the board. Lack of staff could also lead to closure.
This doesn’t take into account that there is already legislature on the floor that would increase minimum wage.
One other thought is that increased minimum wages for staff could also result in non-qualification of certain health plans.
All of these points are reason for us to raise the alarms that this ballot question as written is not the right path for our legislators to be taking and we need to make sure that our industry can survive. We ask you to NOT sign this petition and look to us as we continue to advocate for the rights of our employees.