As state legislatures start off the new year, lawmakers have been quick to jump on new minimum wage hike proposals, including bills that would eliminate state tip credits.
The research on potential impacts of these bills is clear: they employees by reducing employment opportunities, limiting earnings, and forcing businesses to close.
According to analysis by economists from Miami and Trinity Universities using nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office methodology, these state proposals could cost more than 94,000 jobs combined and $268.5 million in lost employee earnings.
Read more on the bills introduced already this year, and how they could impact employees in each state.
- Massachusetts’ “Minimum Wage for Tipped Employees Initiative” would eliminate the Bay State’s tip credit and raise the tipped wage more than 120% up to $15 per hour by 2029. The ballot measure received enough signatures to go to the state legislature for adoption. If lawmakers do not adopt the measure, organizers will have the opportunity to raise additional signatures to send it to the ballot.
- Who is impacted: Tipped employees
- How many jobs would be lost: 8,155
- How many earnings would be lost: $29.7 million
- Michigan’s “$15 Minimum Wage Initiative” would increase the state minimum wage up to $15 per hour by 2027 and eliminate the state’s tip credit and cash wage for tipped workers. The measure has gathered enough signatures to go on the ballot this year but was not approved by a majority of the state’s Board of Canvassers, and a district court will determine if this measure goes to voters in November.
- Who is impacted: Regular minimum wage and tipped employees
- How many jobs would be lost: 43,568
- How many earnings would be lost: $48.2 million
- Maryland’s Senate Bill 160 would eliminate the state’s tip credit and raise the minimum wage to $15 by 2027. An identical bill was proposed last year and stalled in the Senate Finance Committee after hearing concerns from dozens of local tipped employees.
- Who is impacted: Tipped employees
- How many jobs would be lost: 7,179
- How many earnings would be lost: $44 million
- Virginia’s House Bill 1/Senate Bill 1 and House Bill 335: A pair of bills (HB 1/SB 1) seek to approve two final increases to the state’s regular minimum wage up to $15 per hour by 2026. HB335 also seeks to eliminate the state’s tip credit, which would raise the minimum wage for tipped restaurant employees more than 600% by 2028.
- Who is impacted: Tipped employees
- How many jobs would be lost: 28,442
- How many earnings would be lost: $129.5 million
- New Hampshire’s SB 308 would establish a $15 minimum wage by 2025. This would also affect tipped employees, as it would maintain a tip credit amount of 45% of the regular minimum wage rate.
- Who is impacted: Regular minimum wage and tipped employees
- How many jobs would be lost: 6,885
- How many earnings would be lost: $17.1 million