A server waits for customers in a cafe. Voters in several states expressed mixed views on ballot measures to change the hourly rate for tipped workers or raise the overall minimum wage. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)
Voters in two red states agreed to incrementally raise their minimum wage to $15 an hour and require employers to give workers sick leave, and a third red state also approved sick leave.
But a proposed base wage of $18 an hour in California failed, as did initiatives in two states to change the hourly rate for tipped workers.
The issue of “tipped wages” attracted a lot of attention during the presidential campaign, when both major party candidates pledged to eliminate federal taxes on tips. President-elect Donald Trump’s pledge would require congressional approval.
In Massachusetts, a ballot measure would have gradually raised the state minimum wage for tipped workers — now at $6.75 an hour, as long as their tips bring them to at least $15 an hour — to match the general minimum wage of $15 an hour. 2029, with tips still allowed. It was defeated by 64%-36%.
Some restaurant workers worried that customers would be stingier if they knew servers would get a higher base salary, and restaurateurs argued the measure would increase their costs and possibly put them out of business.
Voters will decide minimum wage ballot measures in several states
The National Restaurant Association and its state chapter have poured about $1 million into a campaign against the measure, according to the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance.
In an open letter to restaurants after the vote, the Massachusetts Restaurant Association said the defeat of the ballot measure saved the state’s restaurant industry $870 million, an average of $133,000 per restaurant. The group said that “servers, bartenders, vendors, owners, managers… chambers of commerce, visitor groups, political parties on both sides of the aisle and the governor have all been the pulse of the No. 5 movement in Massachusetts.”
One of those bartenders, Gretchen Shelgren, who works at Mamma Mia’s restaurant in Plymouth, said in an interview after the vote that word of mouth also had a lot to do with the measure’s defeat. “People just told their friends, who told their friends, and of course it worked.”
She said raising her minimum wage would likely have reduced her take-home pay. She said she makes more than triple the regular minimum wage with tips.
But supporters of the ballot measure said the defeat was less a word-of-mouth campaign than a heavily funded effort by restaurants looking to save thousands of dollars in extra pay for their workers. The “No on 5” campaign produced T-shirts, napkins, flyers and other items that restaurants handed out to customers.
“They’ve dumped millions of dollars into this,” said Grace McGovern, a server and organizer with the national One Fair Wage organization, which has advocated higher wages. “Money and influence run deep.”
But campaign finance data in Massachusetts shows her group has also poured $1 million into the effort.
McGovern also alleged that supervisors told employees their jobs could be in jeopardy if restaurants were forced to pay the higher wages.
In Arizona, voters overwhelmingly rejected a measure that would have allowed employers to pay tipped workers less.
Failed 75%-25% on an initiative that would have allowed tipped workers to be paid 25% less per hour than the minimum wage – or currently $10.77 per hour – as long as their wages including tips were at least $2 higher than that of the state. minimum $14.35. Currently, Arizona companies can pay tipped workers $11.35, $3 less than the minimum.
Blue state rejects wage increase
California’s proposal to gradually increase the minimum wage to $18 per hour by 2026 narrowly failed: 51%-49%. Opponents and supporters combined to raise a $1.8 million war chest for the issue — the smallest amount of any proposal on Californians’ ballots this year, according to The Sacramento Bee. If the measure had passed, California would have become, along with Hawaii, the highest overall minimum wage of any state.
The current wage floor in California is currently $16 per hour, but some workers are paid more under the law. Earlier this year, California set a new base wage for fast food workers at $20 an hour. Healthcare workers are on track to get a gradual increase to $25 an hour.
Supporters of California’s higher minimum wage argued that higher salaries would help lower-income families and potentially reduce the number of residents dependent on the government. Labor groups were the biggest supporters of the increase.
But opponents, led by California business interests, insisted the higher pay for workers would hurt them, especially as they battle inflation-driven higher prices for supplies and labor costs. The business groups also said higher mandatory wages could force them to lay off people.
Voters approve sick leave
Missouri voters agreed 58%-42% to enact a minimum wage of $13.75 per hour next year, which would then increase by $1.25 per year until reaching $15 per hour in 2026.
The referendum also requires employers to provide one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked. Companies with fifteen or fewer employees must provide at least five days of paid sick leave annually, while larger companies must provide at least seven days.
Alaska voters agreed 57% to 43% to raise their state’s minimum wage to $15 an hour by July 2027 and guarantee paid sick leave for workers. Under the measure, employees at companies with fewer than 15 employees can accrue up to 40 hours of sick leave annually, while employees at larger companies can accrue up to 56 hours.
Nebraska voters have approved by a wide margin, 74%-26%, a ballot measure requiring companies to offer paid sick leave — up to seven days for companies with at least 20 employees and five days for companies with fewer employees.
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