Blog Posts

This week, advocates for Governor Gavin Newsom’s $20 fast food minimum wage are coming out in droves – clawing at alternative data sources to prove Newsom is right and restaurant operators are wrong about the impacts of the wage law. The two studies that surfaced over the last two weeks,…

This week, the California Business and Industrial Alliance (CABIA) released its second ad in USA Today calling out Governor Newsom for his revisionist history on the success of California’s $20 fast food minimum wage hike. The Governor continues to cherry pick data, using whatever is politically advantageous to his…

California Governor Gavin Newsom’s spin room has been awfully quiet since new state jobs data dropped over the weekend. Last week, the governor published an op-ed claiming California’s fast food industry was in fact thriving – expressing no concerns about restaurant closures, layoffs, or price hikes following the April…

Last week, The Harris-Walz campaign officially added tip credit elimination to its platform last week, after weeks of pressure from activist organizations like One Fair Wage, which claim that doing so will end inequality and discrimination against women and minorities in the industry. This week, U.S. House Education…

A new study conducted by University of California-Irvine economists Dr. David Neumark and Emma Wohl examines how increasing the tipped minimum wage affects earnings gaps for restaurant workers. While anti-tip credit activists claim eliminating the current tip credit system would reduce inequities faced by women and minority workers, the study…

Many states saw proposals in the legislature or filed as ballot measures to raise wage floors and/or eliminate the tip credit this year. While many have failed due to employee and small business opposition, there are still several that have qualified to go before voters on November 5. Learn more…

Recently, the Democratic National Committee released its party platform that included raising the federal minimum wage to $15 per hour. Around the same time, Princeton economist Alan Blinder claimed a federal wage hike to $15 wouldn’t cost jobs, because “research has shown this isn’t the case.” EPI’s…

This week during the Democratic National Convention, the party unveiled its official platform, which included raising the minimum wage up to $15 an hour by 2026 across the country. Activists are also calling on Vice President Kamala Harris, if she wins in November, to eliminate the federal…

It’s no secret that California’s fast food industry has taken a hit due to the recent $20 minimum wage law. National news headlines reveal restaurants have had to lay off employees or reduce their hours and raise menu prices to stay in operation. An EPI survey indicates these changes are…

Last week, the Michigan Supreme Court ruled that the state legislature’s use of an ‘Adopt and Amend’ strategy on a 2018 wage hike ballot measure was unconstitutional. As a result, the Court reinstated the original measure with timing adjustments, which will trigger an increase in the regular minimum…