New York December 1, 2023

New York Should Save What’s Left of Its Tip Credit

In recent years, New York’s decision to slash its tip credit and increase its tipped minimum wage requirement has wreaked havoc on the restaurant industry. Data already shows that even before the onset of the pandemic, downsizing the tip credit has killed New York full-service restaurant jobs and stunted…
November 17, 2023

The Year is Almost Over, But Minimum Wage Proposals Are Still Alive and Well

After a flurry of proposals on minimum wage hikes and tip credit elimination at the local, state, and federal levels this year, union activists aren’t done yet. Campaigns led by tipped employees to save tip credits prevailed this year in Maryland (and local Prince George’s County), Rhode Island, Connecticut, and…
November 10, 2023

The (Not So) Happy Anniversary of Initiative 82 in DC

November 8 marked the one-year anniversary of District of Columbia voters passing Initiative 82, a ballot measure to eliminate the city’s tip credit. Ever since its passage, the actual implementation of the measure has been plagued by procedural delays and overwhelming concerns from restaurants, employees, and diners alike…
November 3, 2023

One Fair Wage Grants Barely Cover One Employee’s Wages for Three Months

One Fair Wage, the union-funded group pushing states and cities around the country to eliminate their tip credits, often touts to lawmakers and media that switching to a flat minimum wage won’t cost anything. With sights set on Ohio as its next target, One Fair Wage has brought the…
October 27, 2023

One Fair Wage Used to Promote Service Charges…What Happened?

In recent attempts to eliminate tip credits in Chicago and several Maryland counties, One Fair Wage president Saru Jayaraman vilified restaurants who chose to use service charges as a way to the rising costs associated with tip credit elimination. It turns out, One Fair Wage once endorsed service charges as…
October 20, 2023

New $15 Minimum Wage Ballot Proposal Would Kill 44,000 Michigan Jobs

Anti-tipping activist group One Fair Wage announced it submitted enough signatures to qualify a measure that would create a $15 minimum wage and fully eliminate the state’s tip credit. If certified and approved on the ballot in November 2024, this measure would increase the state’s current tipped minimum wage by…
October 13, 2023

Serving Up the Truth Behind Service Charges on Your Check

Ever since tip credit elimination proposals have been introduced in states and cities across the country, customers everywhere are noticing more and more fees added to their dining bills. But what exactly are service charges? Are they the same as tips? Do they go to your restaurant server or bartender?…
October 6, 2023

EPI Debunks Bogus One Fair Wage List of Montgomery County Restaurants Paying Flat Hourly Wage

One Fair Wage has deployed in Montgomery County, Maryland to attempt what they failed to do statewide: eliminate the county’s tip credit at the expense of thousands of tipped restaurant employees. Without the economic data on their side, One Fair Wage has resorted to misleading lawmakers and the public…
Massachusetts September 29, 2023

Unprecedented $20 Minimum Wage Would Slash Thousands of Massachusetts Jobs

This week, the Massachusetts’ legislature’s Joint Committee on Labor and Workforce Development held a hearing on several bills that would be devastating for the Commonwealth’s small businesses and their employees. The Committee heard public testimony on S.1200 and H.1925 that would raise the state minimum wage from…
September 22, 2023

Despite Advancing Bill, Chicago Employees Speak Out Against Tip Credit Elimination

This week, the Chicago City Council’s Workforce Development Committee voted to advance a proposal that would eliminate the tip credit city wide. This policy has played out disastrously across the country, costing employees their jobs and tips, and even forcing restaurants to shut down. Michael Saltsman, executive director of the…