The battle to lift pay for tipped workers to the state minimal wage isn’t going away.
One Truthful Wage, the nationwide advocacy group behind the initiative, has vowed to proceed its battle in Massachusetts after voters overwhelmingly denied the poll query on Election Day.
The group stated it might search “legislative action and/or future ballot measures.”
Query 5 would have progressively elevated pay for servers and bartenders till it met the state minimal wage of $15 an hour in 2029. Employers may have determined whether or not their workers participated in a tip pool, which means suggestions may have been distributed to non-service staffers.
Voters rejected the poll measure by an almost 30% margin, the Related Press’ unofficial outcomes present.
Servers and bartenders will proceed to earn a subminimum wage of $6.75 an hour. They are often paid that quantity supplied their suggestions convey them no less than to the present minimal wage of $15 per hour.
One Truthful Wage President Saru Jayaraman highlighted how the measure took a number of efforts earlier than raises went into place in Washington, D.C. She additionally blasted opposition group Committee to Defend Suggestions for working a “campaign of misinformation.”
Alaska, California, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington have all enacted a One Truthful Wage coverage.
“This year in MA we fought an uphill battle against millions of dollars in corporate influence, false claims, and fear tactics, and we came closer than anyone thought possible,” Jayaraman stated in an announcement minutes earlier than 1 a.m. Wednesday. “The fight for fair wages is far from over, and we will continue organizing to ensure that every worker in Massachusetts receives the dignity and respect they deserve.”
The Committee to Defend Suggestions declared victory simply after 10 p.m. Tuesday, with outcomes displaying a commanding 30% margin – 65% to 35% rejecting the initiative.
Restaurateurs feared their working prices would improve considerably to accommodate the rise from $6.75 to $15 per hour. They argued that this might have triggered menu costs to skyrocket, folks to exit much less steadily and servers to make much less cash.
