http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060802/...o/minimum_wage

Wed Aug 2, 1:24 PM ET

WASHINGTON - Tip money earned by waitresses in Las Vegas, manicurists in Hollywood and bartenders in Seattle is on the table in the nation's capital, as lawmakers scrap over an election-year minimum wage bill.

Nevada, California and Washington are among seven states where workers get to keep their tips on top of getting paid their state's full minimum wage. In other states, tip-earning workers get paid less and make up the difference with tips.

A provision in GOP-written minimum wage legislation passed by the House and under consideration this week by the Senate could change the law in those seven states — the others are Montana, Alaska, Minnesota and Oregon. It would deal a pay cut of $3 or more an hour to thousands of waiters, bellhops and hairdressers in those states, according to Democrats and labor groups.

"Everything that has been achieved in seven states to support low-wage workers who earn tips is destroyed by this bill," said Sen. Dianne Feinstein (news, bio, voting record), D-Calif. "This bill would slash the salaries of thousands of workers."

Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., called the provision a "travesty."

Republicans and the National Restaurant Association, which opposes a minimum wage increase and fought for the tip provision, dispute the Democratic interpretation. They say the legislation is only intended to have an impact when the states in question increase their minimum wage — at which point the increase would come out of a worker's tips, not an employer's payroll.

"No provision results in the lowering of wages for any worker. The purpose of the provision is to allow employers with tipped employees to count their employees' tips as wages for purposes of meeting their minimum wage obligation," Brendan Flanagan, a spokesman for the National Restaurant Association, said in a statement Tuesday after Democrats began raising concerns.

A memo by the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service on Wednesday backed up the Democratic position. Under the bill language, the seven affected states "would seem to be prohibited from enforcing the minimum wage rate provisions of their laws with respect to a tipped employee" said the memo, written by Jon A. Shimabukuro, a legislative attorney at the research service, for Sen. Barbara Boxer (news, bio, voting record), D-Calif.

The minimum-wage-increase legislation already was controversial because House Republican leaders passed it as part of a bill cutting inheritance taxes on multimillion-dollar estates, a top GOP priority opposed by most Democrats. The tipped-workers' provision looked likely to heighten Democratic opposition and could factor into decision-making by lawmakers who haven't yet made their position known, including Democratic Sens. Maria Cantwell and Patty Murray of Washington state.

The GOP package, expected to come to a vote Friday, would increase the federal minimum wage from $5.15 to $7.25 per hour, phased in over the next three years. States with higher state minimum wages — in California it's now $6.75 an hour; in Washington $7.63 — would keep their higher levels, at least until the federal level exceeds it.

Except for in the seven states at issue, employers of tipped employees now pay only a portion of the minimum wage — starting at $2.13 an hour — as long as the employees draw enough tips to make up the rest. A tipped employee is defined as one who regularly receives more than $30 per month in tips.

Under the GOP-written legislation, according to Democrats, that same system would go into effect in the seven states where employers now pay the full wage. So instead of getting to keep tips on top of their minimum wage in California, Nevada and the other states, tipped workers would be paid a base wage of $2.13 an hour and employers could use their tips to make up the rest.

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i don't have the fortune of living in a state that pays full minimum wage for tipped employees, but i found this quite outrageous.

does a person inheriting multi-million dollar estates really need that tax break as much as waitstaff most likely needs the full minimum wage? this turns my stomach. what are your thoughts?

Well damn I hope that doesn't pass. I'm moving back to Cali in a couple of years and the whole plan was for me to get a part time waitressing job while in school (because of the way they pay their people). So... that's really going to screw up my plans if that passes.

*Edit*

A person in San Fran makes $8.50 an hour (their minimum wage) and therefore makes $1,360 (before taxes) a month, at a fulltime job - plus tips is absolutely helpful!

Have the amount lowered to $5.50 an hour (for people who earn tips), that puts them at $880 a month (before taxes)... plus tips.

That's a $500 a month deduction from people who need the money...

yeah, but from what i've heard from people who have lived in san fran, it's hard for a person making 80,000/year to keep up house payments...

INCREDIBLY hard. My aunt and uncle live there (I'm moving to the Bay Area... not inside San Fran) and they've told me that it's hard (but wonderful) to live IN San Fran. So that's going to seriously mess up a lot of people if that passes.

Minimum wage sucks. There is no way a single person can live on minimum wage. And it sucks that all these congress people are sitting in their huge fucking mansions with millions deciding what people should make.

It is outrageous. This country will not tire until only 1% of the population holds all the wealth while 99% of us are fighting over bread crumbs.

It's pretty much already that way. That's apparently not enough. Oh, but wait... if that happens that a few people on this board should probably kick us for "ugly-ing up the streets" and "being too lazy to want to get a place to live".

should either of my state senators walk into my bar 'n grill and i happen to have to deal with them, i will totally risk my job to tell them off if they support that.

a lot of people say things like "if it's so hard, go to school." but if everyone does that, who is going to wait on them?

starting at $2.13 an hour — as long as the employees draw enough tips to make up the rest. A tipped employee is defined as one who regularly receives more than $30 per month in tips.


It's so nice that rich people can decide that someone who makes more than 30 dollars a month is a tipped employee

Like 30 dollars a month is a reasonable amount of money!

I can understand waitresses, belhops, bartenders recieving less than minimum wage plus tips because they are the money makers when it comes to tips however, hairdressers?? No way!

Plus I think at 2.13 an hour you would make $70 before taxes and less after taxes per weekly paycheck so let's say you don't make alot in tips to make up for it, then what? Maybe they need to define a realistic amount of the year 2006 as far as what is considered a decent tip amount!

I say if someone recieves $300 a month in tips then that is reasonable enough to get away with only paying 2.13 an hour for tipped employees. That is truely making up the costs. Our economy keeps jacking up the prices while workers get to wait ten years before a minimum wage increase?? That's absurd!

Republicans also are whining because they think that now that minimum wage has rose that prices for everything will go up. HELLO! Prices have been going up regardless of minimum wage. Why are they so uppity?

Another concern with tips and the government is that there is no way to keep track of tips that are earned unless the customer tips using a credit card and if the customer pays using a credit card then the employee doesn't get all the tip from the credit card, they have a percentage taken out.

They need to boost the 2.13 an hour to make up for economic expense to at least $4.00 an hour plus tips because in the past ten years, prices have went up alot and all of those tipped employees have nights where they make no tips so to make up for that, $4.00 an hour would be reasonable.

Can you imagine working a full night, not getting tips because it's a slow night or people just walk out not tipping you and you only made 16 dollars that night plus taxes are taken out?

I can't understand them getting less than minimum wage. They're still working just as hard as anyone else and they don't always make the same amount of tips - so they rely on minimum wage to get them money to pay the bills. Taking $500 a month away from a person is literally telling them you don't give a damn if they can't pay the rent.

<<I say if someone recieves $300 a month in tips then that is reasonable enough to get away with only paying 2.13 an hour for tipped employees.>>

even in my state, $300/month in tips is barely enough to live off when making 2.13/hr, and i live in one of the cheapest big cities in the us. my rent is $250.

You should talk to your state senators. They count on you to vote on them. Doesn't mean they will listen...especially not now when the three branches of government are Republican and conservative. Who is looking out for people who would like to keep their extra $20 a day? The mid-term elections are coming up and I really think they're going to be the most important ones we see in years and years. If we continue with a Republican congress, imagine how easy two more years of president Bush's agenda will beeeeeee! Of course, that doesn't mean the Democrats are saints, but at least they hate this president and republicans...so that seems like a win-win for me.

i'm kind of screwed for election time this year. you have to live in the state for six months before you can vote, and i crossed the state line this month. i can't vote in the other state, either, because i don't live there anymore and because my ID was issued in my homestate and i have no utility bill to prove my residence (or former). both the places i lived over there were utilities-paid. i can't even vote in my homestate because i switched my registration over when i first moved to kansas.

but i'm going to try and encourage a non-voting friend to do it for me. i may try and contact the senators anyway at least.

Wow $250 a month?? Is it a decent place?

I can see everyone's point but it's all about taxes and not knowing how much tip money that person makes, especially if it's cash. I've known waitresses as I was one myself and you do have those nights of making five dollars then other nights where you make over a hundred. In some restaurants like those corporate chains, you can easily make at least $80 a night at the minimum.

Where I live, I'm used to 2.13 plus tips and have made it through. However I was just stating that their tip laws are silly. It does not mean that you make only 300 a month all I was saying is that they need to jack it up in order for it to be considered a tip job. Considering it a tip job if you make more than 30 dollars is too low so raise up the minimum because chances are that if you are making a minimum $300 a month, you are probably making decent money with tips....that doesn't mean that you make $300 on the dot, it means, it starts to count if you make at least $300 a month and then the employees won't have to pay you minimum wage however, how can anyone truely calculate that especially if most tips are in cash?

I know that you now write down your tip earnings but not everyone is honest.

If you are thinking of on the dot earnings that should be considered what is considered a tip paying job then you could say if it's at least $600 a month in tips then the employee doesn't have to pay minimum wage.

Waitresses and waiters ESPECIALLY bartenders can make alot of money.

It really depends on where you are working but the government probably won't sit there for weeks and declare place for place what that employer should pay to their employees so that is why they choose a standard pay.

I still think everyone should at least get $4.00 an hour for being a waitress, bartender etc.. because that is good enough to make up for those nights of not making money through tips or the employer must pay minimum wage on slow nights and determine what nights are slow plus tips. All the nights when the place is packed, the employer can pay below minimum wage because you have a great chance of earning anywhere from $80-300....depending once again where you work.

Fancy restaurant= $$$
Diner= $$

Hairdressers however, they may get tips but they went through school and everything for that job and it's a career! They should get minimum wage plus tips. It's nothing like a restaurant where you know that you'll have tips o'plenty and several tables all at once. Hairdressers can spend hours on one person...sometimes even 5 hours for hair weaves so that in my opinion is worth at least minimum wage plus tips. If she spends 5 hours on one person's hair, spends another 3 hours on someone else and they both tip her 10-20...that's not alot at all

<<Wow $250 a month?? Is it a decent place?>>

it is. it's a decent-sized studio with a clawfoot tub, tile floors in the bathroom and linoleum in the kitchen. the kitchen is really tiny but for the price it's worth it (plus i dont cook a whole lot). it's hard to find a place this good for that cheap, but i sure found one.

<<I still think everyone should at least get $4.00 an hour for being a waitress, bartender etc.. because that is good enough to make up for those nights of not making money through tips or the employer must pay minimum wage on slow nights and determine what nights are slow plus tips. All the nights when the place is packed, the employer can pay below minimum wage because you have a great chance of earning anywhere from $80-300....depending once again where you work.>>

$4 an hour would keep up a little better with prices rising like they often do at least.

In my location your studio would cost $700-$1000

You know, through a strange series of events, I actually watched Oprah the other day. (I think it was last Friday?) It was such a good show. She devoted the whole hour to the minimum wage issues. She started off by having the super-size me guy (Morgan Spurlock) and his girlfriend showing a little bit of their 30 days living off minimum wage. She also had a lady who worked full time but was homeless (and she had a daughter!) and a couple of other examples. She stressed that these situations are all too common now. I'm really glad she did that because my guess is that there's a lot of people out there who watch her show but hadn't given this any thought and now maybe they will. (and possibly write their representatives).

Here is all of the info about the show if anyone is interested:
http://www2.oprah.com/tows/pastshows...20060414.jhtml

Of course, they did just pass a bill to up the min. wage over 3 years, but I got the impression that they did it just to tack on the parts that will get rid of the estate tax, since they had just turned down another bill proposing a min. wage increase within the last couple of months.

And I'm sure I'm thread whoring here, but I just put up a thread about a related issue (other end of the money spectrum) yesterday:

http://www.kittyradio.com/soapbox/showthread.php?t=8717

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<<In my location your studio would cost $700-$1000>>

if anyone wonders how someone could possibly enjoy kansas city, this is part of the reason why

where do you live?