The Growing Movement for $15

Irene Tung, Yannet Lathrop, and Paul SonnNOVEMBER 2015

FACT SHEETIt’s Time to Raise the Minimum Wage

This fact sheet draws upon data tables from Raising the Minimum Wage to $12 by 2020 Would Lift Wages for35 Million American Workers, a forthcoming paper by David Cooper of the Economic Policy Institute.

The minimum wage in 2014 was 24 percent below its 1968 level despite the fact that U.S. productivity more thandoubled over that period and low-wage workers now have much more experience and education than they did backthen.1 Now is the time to address this historic weakness in the minimum wage by raising it and lifting the earnings oflow-wage workers.

Across the country, there is overwhelming momentum in favor of raising wages for our nation’s lowest-wage workers.Twenty-nine states and the District of Columbia, as well as 21 cities and counties, set their minimum wages above theinadequate federal rate of $7.25. The Fight for $15 campaign has galvanized workers across the country to demand thekind of living wages that they are entitled to receive. As a result of their actions, cities such as Seattle and San Franciscohave raised their minimum wages to $15, and some of the nation’s largest employers have raised wages even in theabsence of federal action.

On Election Day in November 2014, in Arkansas, Alaska, South Dakota, and Nebraska, voters by very wide marginsapproved ballot initiatives to raise their state minimum wages. And a national poll released in January 2015 showed that75 percent of Americans—representing all demographics—support raising the federal minimum wage to over $12 perhour.2 These facts demonstrate that a substantial increase in the minimum wage is needed and enjoys overwhelmingsupport across political lines. The Raise the Wage Act measures proposed by Senator Patty Murray and RepresentativeRobert “Bobby” C. Scott will take important and long-overdue steps to address the national crises of wage stagnationand income inequality.

What Would the Raise the Wage Act Do?Raise the federal minimum wage to $12.00 by 2020 (by $0.75 to $8 an hour the first year, then by $1.00 a year forthe next four years).

Set automatic increases starting in 2021 to keep pace with rising wages overall (i.e., adjust the minimum wage tomaintain a constant minimum wage–to–median wage ratio).

Gradually phase out the subminimum wage for tipped workers, which has been frozen at $2.13 since 1991.

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Who Will Benefit from The Raise the Wage Act?35 million workers (more than one in four)

30 percent of wage-earning women (which equals 19.6 million women)

35 percent of African American workers

38 percent of Hispanic workers

15.5 million working men

Adults: 89 percent of affected workers are 20 years old or older

Parents: 27.7 percent of affected workers have children

Lower-income families: Half of affected workers have total family incomes of less than $40,000 a year

College-educated workers: 45 percent of affected workers have at least some college experience

Children: 17.5 million children (23 percent of all U.S. children) have at least one parent who will get a raise

Why $12?An increase of the federal minimum wage to $12.00 would provide raises for 35 million workers (directly orindirectly through ripple effects)—more than a quarter of the workforce—in an era of stagnant wages.

An increase to $12.00 would pump billions of dollars into the U.S. economy, benefiting Main Street busi-nesses: Workers who are both directly and indirectly affected by this bill would see nearly $80 billion in increasedearnings over the next five years. Because low-wage workers tend to spend increased earnings locally on basic needs,this will benefit Main Street businesses that rely on consumer spending.

An increase to $12.00 would restore the federal minimum wage’s historic value: $12.00 in 2020 would equala modest 10 percent increase from the federal minimum wage at its peak value in 1968, based on the Bureau ofLabor Statistics’ most commonly used measure of inflation and Congressional Budget Office inflation projections.A 10 percent raise is modest, indeed, given that today’s low-wage workers are older, better educated, and more pro-ductive than their counterparts in 1968.

A $12.00 wage in 2020 is economically sustainable: This proposal will restore the minimum wage to its relationto (its value relative to) a typical worker’s wage when the minimum wage was at its strongest, back in 1968 whenthe national unemployment rate was below 4 percent.

Annual increases under this proposal are in line with past federal minimum wage increases, in percentageterms: Raising the minimum wage to $12.00 over five years represents average annual increases of 10.6 percent.The average of all increases since 1961 is 11.7 percent a year.

Why Set One Fair Wage for Tipped Workers?Eliminating the subminimum wage will reduce poverty, particularly for women workers: In states that havea subminimum wage for tipped workers, two-thirds of whom are women, these workers are twice as likely to livein poverty than the non-tipped workforce. Conversely, in states that don’t have a subminimum wage for tipped

ECONOMIC POLICY INSTITUTE | APRIL 23, 2015 PAGE 2

workers, the poverty rate for tipped workers is dramatically lower: Poverty among restaurant servers and bartendersis 43 percent lower in states where tipped workers get the regular minimum wage than in states where they’re paidthe federal $2.13 subminimum wage for tipped workers.

There is strong bipartisan support for one fair wage: The January 2015 poll commissioned by the NationalEmployment Law Project found that 71 percent of Americans support eliminating the subminimum wage fortipped workers.

Why Index the Minimum Wage?Low-wage workers, like all workers, deserve an incremental and predictable raise each year, so they don’t fallfurther and further behind. Indexing will ensure that the minimum wage will effectively serve as the wage floor inthe labor market, establishing the maximum allowable gap between our county’s lowest-wage workers and average-earning workers. Indexing is a simple, sensible, and effective tool to combat wage stagnation and income inequality.

Employers will also be better served by incremental and predictable wage increases each year. As with allother costs of doing business that increase from year to year, when an employer can plan for them, she can absorbthem better by making strategic choices about costs and pricing, rather than having to absorb larger, unpredictableincreases for a number of years after congressional action.

Endnotes1. Low-Wage Workers Have Far More Education Than They Did in 1968, Yet They Make Far Less, by Lawrence Mishel, Economic

Policy Institute, January 2014.

2. “New Poll Shows Overwhelming Support for Substantial Minimum Wage Increase,” by Mitchell Hirsch, Raise the MinimumWage, January 15, 2015.

This is a corrected version of a publication initially posted on April 23, 2015. A programming error did notcorrectly account for scheduled changes to state minimum wages in 2019 and 2020. Accounting for thosechanges doesn’t significantly change the overall picture or the demographic profile of workers affected bythe federal minimum-wage bill, but does decrease the estimate of affected workers and the amount of theirincreased wages, as some workers previously expected to get a raise under the bill will already have higherwages from the increase in their state minimum wage.

ECONOMIC POLICY INSTITUTE | APRIL 23, 2015 PAGE 3

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Local familyleave initiatives snowballRon RugglessThu, 20160407 15:50

New York and San Francisco enact new provisions as operators face the complexities

As local governments make the long, slow march to higher minimum wages in the absence of congressionalaction, familyleave measures at the state and local levels are snowballing as well.

Restaurant operators face the growing complexity of dealing with the varying requirements for schedulingand maintaining benefits, said Dale J. Venturini, president and CEO of the Rhode Island HospitalityAssociation, based in a state that offers family leave slightly expanded beyond the federal Family andMedical Leave Act.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Monday signed a new minimum wage and family leave measure forworkers in his state, following California, New Jersey and Rhode Island with provisions for workers to taketime off for a new baby, an ailing relative or to help when someone is called to active military service. TheNew York family leave is to be funded through an employee payroll deduction.

Related

NY paid family leave approved in minimum wage deal

California governor signs historic minimum wage bill

See the latest news from NRN

On Tuesday, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a law that requires employersto offer six weeks of fully paid leave for new parents, expanding on the California familyleave benefitapproved in 2004. State law already requires that employees receive 55 percent of their wages for up to sixweeks of paid family leave.

The San Francisco ordinance will require businesses with more than 20 employees to pay the remaining 45percent of their employees’ wages not covered by the state family leave. Eligibility applies to parents ofeither gender and to both full and parttime employees who work in the city. The law takes effect in January2017, with a phasedin program for smaller businesses. Businesses with 35 employees or more must complyby July 2017. Businesses with 20 or more employees have until January 2018.

On deck is the District of Columbia council, which is considering a familyleave measure introduced last fallwith a provision for up to 16 weeks of paid leave.

“Today’s families need both higher wages and paid leave to pay the bills, care for children and loved ones,and have a fair shot at a decent life,” said Joanna Blotner, manager of the DC Paid Family Leave Campaign,in a statement made in the wake of New York’s measure. “We’re excited to see New York lead the way —leadership we hope the D.C. Council and Mayor [Muriel] Bowser will follow.”

The growing number of familyleave measures has drawn opposition from some restaurant groups,especially when they impose new taxes or restrict operators’ ability to maintain schedules.

Marilou Halvorsen, president of the New Jersey Restaurant Association, said her group is opposing paidleaves that are being imposed by municipalities.

“There currently isn't a statewide bill, but it is in 13 municipalities and more to come,” Halvorsen said in aemail.

“Most recently the mayor of New Brunswick [N.J.] reached out to my members and the association beforean ordinance was introduced and asked for our feedback,” Halvorsen said. “We offered suggestions to makeit more palatable and he incorporated our changes.”

Halvorsen said the NJRA would like to see the New Brunswick ordinance become a model for any statewidelegislation.

“It allows businesses to have some control” over their operations, she said.

New York’s paid family leave signed this week may be a blueprint for what’s to come.

New York workers, both men and women, will be able to take as many as 12 weeks of employeefunded paidfamily leave in a budget deal that also included a graduated move toward a $15 an hour minimum wage. Theleave is intended for care of a new baby or ailing relative, or to relieve family pressures when someone iscalled to active military service.

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, who appeared with Cuomo at a Monday event with laborleaders in New York, said she would seek similar a similar expansion of family leave at a national level.

New York’s familyleave policy will also be phased in, starting at eight weeks and 50 percent of pay in 2018,and reaching 12 weeks and 67 percent of pay in 2021. The amount is capped at twothirds of the New Yorkaverage weekly wage, which in 2014 was $1,266.44.

Under the deal, New York workers will have a 70centaweek payroll deduction to pay for the program.That will increase to about $1.40 a week.

The federal Family and Medical Leave Act offers an unpaid, 12week familyleave policy nationwide, butabout 40 percent of workers are not covered because of such limits as working for companies that employfewer than 50 people or work part time.

Contact Ron Ruggless at ronald.ruggless@penton.comFollow him on Twitter: @RonRuggless

Source URL: http://nrn.com/government/localfamilyleaveinitiativessnowball

Local restaurant deals with minimum wage hikesBy Carmen Chau (http://news10.com/author/carmen-chau/)Published: January 2, 2016, 6:15 pm  |  Updated: January 2, 2016, 10:28 pm

GLENS FALLS, N.Y. (NEWS10) — Tipped workers will see a 50% hike in their wages; a new

mandate was just implemented on Jan. 1 .

One restaurant has made a big change because of this mandate.

Before January ᥈rst, they were a tipped restaurant but not anymore.

st

We spoke to several of their servers to get their reaction and they tell me they are okay with

not being able to receive tips.

Davidson Brothers Brewing Company has been around since 1996, and for the ᥈rst time in

many years, they have had to make a change.

This restaurant is one of many in New York State that has been a᥈ected by the wage

increase and because of this new mandate; they are a no tip restaurant.

Jessica Clements is one of the many servers there and this was her reaction.

“De᥈nitely di᥈erent,” says Clements.

Before the mandate, tipped servers made $5 an hour but with the new policy, they will

make $9 an hour plus paid vacation and bonuses.

Clements says she is okay with it.

Rick Davidson, the co-owner of Davidson Brothers says none of his servers have wanted to

leave after learning this and he says it is because they are well compensated.

“It was a little bit of a surprise to start with but I mean, after we’ve kind of had a chance to

kind of think about it a little bit, I mean, I think it’s really going to help us in the long run.

Especially we have those days when you can walk out of here with maybe $20 and at least

now we have some sort of guarantee to how much we’re going to be making every day,”

says Brendan Brieley who is another server.

Dine in guest checks will include an 18% surcharge which is not a gratuity. The 18% is put

into place so every worker gets paid a fair wage.

Davidson, says, “We made it 18% because now it is subject to sales tax which in Warren

County is 7%, so the actual total percentage will end up being 19.26%. Well, that’s well

under the 22% average tip, so the goal was and we didn’t raise menu food prices, except for

where our food cost item went up. “

As for Clements a four month server there, getting paid in general is all that matters to her.

“We all get paid in the long run, right?” says Clements.

The servers told NEWS10 that most customers are well aware of not having to tip and if for

any reason; a table does leave a tip the servers cannot keep it and must hand it over to the

manager.

 

 

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Ǻț Pįżżěțțěřįǻ Břųňěțțį, ǻ řěșțǻųřǻňț įň Mǻňħǻțțǻň’ș Ẅěșț Vįŀŀǻģě, ǿẅňěř Jǻșǿň Břųňěțțįșǻįđ ħě ẅǿųŀđ șǿǿň ěňđ ǿvěřțįmě ǻňđ čųț ěmpŀǿỳěě ħǿųřș. Đěŀįvěřỳ ẅǿřķěřș ẅįŀŀ ħǻvěǻđđįțįǿňǻŀ đųțįěș, șųčħ ǻș čħǿppįňģ ẅǿǿđ fǿř țħě pįżżǻ ǿvěň.

“Țħěỳ’řě ňǿț jųșț ģǿįňģ țǿ șțǻňđ țħěřě ǻňđ ẅǻįț fǿř đěŀįvěřįěș, țħǻț’ș fǿř șųřě,” șǻįđ Mř.Břųňěțțį, ẅħǿ įș pŀǻňňįňģ țħěșě čħǻňģěș běčǻųșě ħě ěxpěčțș ħįș pǻỳřǿŀŀ țǿ řįșě $700 ǻẅěěķ ǻfțěř Ňěẅ Ỳǿřķ’ș ňěẅ mįňįmųm ẅǻģěș țǻķě ěffěčț.

Ǿň Țħųřșđǻỳ, țħě șțǻțě’ș mįňįmųm ẅǻģě įňčřěǻșěș țǿ $9 ǻň ħǿųř fřǿm $8.75. Țħě ħǿųřŀỳ

This copy is for your personal, noncommercial use only. To order presentationready copies for distribution to your colleagues, clients or customers visithttp://www.djreprints.com.

http://www.wsj.com/articles/minimumwagessettoincreaseinnewyork1451525763

Ų.Ș.   ŇĚẄ ỲǾŘĶ   ŇỲ ŘĚĢİǾŇ

Mįňįmųm Ẅǻģě Șěť ťǿ İňčřěǻșě įň ŇěẅỲǿřķŘǻįșě țǻķěș ěffěčț įň přěŀųđě țǿ bǻțțŀě ǿvěř Ģǿv. Ǻňđřěẅ Čųǿmǿ’ș pųșħ fǿř $15-ǻň-ħǿųř fŀǿǿř

| |

Abu Sondo, a delivery man for Pizzetteria Brunetti in the West Village, now also cuts wood for the pizza oven. Therestaurant owner is asking staff to do additional work as the minimum wage goes up. PHOTO: ADRIENNE GRUNWALD FORTHE WALL STREET JOURNAL

Đěč. 30, 2015 8:36 p.m. ĚȚ

Bỳ ČǾŘİŇŇĚ ŘǺMĚỲ ǻňđ MİĶĚ VİĿĚŇȘĶỲ

mįňįmųm ẅǻģěș fǿř țįppěđ ẅǿřķěřș—ẅħįčħ ẅěřě $4.90 fǿř șěřvįčě ěmpŀǿỳěěș ǻț řěșǿřțħǿțěŀș, $5 fǿř fǿǿđ-șěřvįčě ẅǿřķěřș ǻňđ $5.65 fǿř ǿțħěř șěřvįčě ẅǿřķěřș—ǻŀŀ ģǿ țǿ $7.50.

Fǿř fǻșț-fǿǿđ ẅǿřķěřș, țħě ħǿųřŀỳ mįňįmųm ẅǻģě įňčřěǻșěș țǿ $10.50 įň Ňěẅ Ỳǿřķ Čįțỳǻňđ $9.75 įň țħě řěșț ǿf țħě șțǻțě ǻș pǻřț ǿf ǻ ģřǻđųǻŀ pħǻșě-įň ǿf ǻ $15 mįňįmųm ħǿųřŀỳẅǻģě ǻț řěșțǻųřǻňțș ẅįțħ ǻț ŀěǻșț 30 ŀǿčǻțįǿňș ňǻțįǿňẅįđě.

Țħě řįșįňģ ẅǻģěș mǻřķ țħěŀǻțěșț čħǻpțěř įň ǻ ŀǿňģ-șįmměřįňģ pǿŀįțįčǻŀ bǻțțŀěǿvěř ẅǿřķěř pǻỳ įň Ňěẅ Ỳǿřķǻňđ ǻčřǿșș țħě čǿųňțřỳ.

Ẅħěň țħě ňěxț ŀěģįșŀǻțįvěșěșșįǿň běģįňș įň Ǻŀbǻňỳ įňJǻňųǻřỳ, Ģǿv. Ǻňđřěẅ Čųǿmǿ,

ǻ Đěmǿčřǻț, įș ěxpěčțěđ țǿ fǻčě ǻň ųpħįŀŀ bǻțțŀě ǻș ħě ǻđvǻňčěș ǻ přǿpǿșǻŀ țǿ įňčřěǻșě țħěșțǻțě mįňįmųm ẅǻģě țǿ $15 ǻň ħǿųř.

Țħě ģǿvěřňǿř įș ěxpěčțěđ țǿ řěŀěǻșě șpěčįfįčș ǿň ħįș mįňįmųm-ẅǻģě přǿpǿșǻŀ ẅħěň ħěđěŀįvěřș ħįș Șțǻțě ǿf țħě Șțǻțě ǻđđřěșș ǿň Jǻň. 13. Ħě ħǻș įňđįčǻțěđ țħǻț țħě $15 ẅǻģěẅǿųŀđ bě ģřǻđųǻŀŀỳ pħǻșěđ įň ǻňđ įňčŀųđě ǻ țǻx čųț fǿř bųșįňěșșěș ǻffěčțěđ bỳ țħě řįșįňģẅǻģěș.

Țħįș ỳěǻř, Mř. Čųǿmǿ șįđěșțěppěđ țħě Ŀěģįșŀǻțųřě ǻňđ ģǿț țħě $15 mįňįmųm ẅǻģě fǿřfǻșț-fǿǿđ ẅǿřķěřș bỳ įňșțřųčțįňģ ħįș ǻčțįňģ ŀǻbǿř čǿmmįșșįǿňěř țǿ įmpǻňěŀ ǻ șpěčįǻŀẅǻģě bǿǻřđ țǿ čǿňșįđěř ǻň įňčřěǻșě fǿř țħě įňđųșțřỳ. Țħě bǿǻřđ șųbșěqųěňțŀỳřěčǿmměňđěđ țħě įňčřěǻșě, țħě ǻčțįňģ ŀǻbǿř čǿmmįșșįǿňěř ǻppřǿvěđ įț ǻňđ įț běčǻměŀǻẅ.

Bųț țǿ řǻįșě țħě mįňįmųm ẅǻģě fǿř ǻŀŀ ẅǿřķěřș įň țħě șțǻțě, Mř. Čųǿmǿ ẅįŀŀ ňěěđ țħěĿěģįșŀǻțųřě.

Řěfŀěčțįňģ ǻ ňǻțįǿňǻŀ đěbǻțě, țħě ŀěģįșŀǻțįvě bǻțțŀě įň Ǻŀbǻňỳ ģěňěřǻŀŀỳ șpŀįțș ǻŀǿňģ pǻřțỳŀįňěș: Đěmǿčřǻțș șųppǿřț řǻįșįňģ țħě mįňįmųm ẅǻģě, ǻňđ Řěpųbŀįčǻňș ǻřě řěșįșțǻňț țǿ įț.

Țħě ĢǾP-ŀěđ șțǻțě Șěňǻțě ħǻș přěvįǿųșŀỳ ǿppǿșěđ přǿpǿșěđ įňčřěǻșěș įň țħě mįňįmųmẅǻģě, bųț Mǻjǿřįțỳ Ŀěǻđěř Jǿħň Fŀǻňǻģǻň, ǻ Ŀǿňģ İșŀǻňđ Řěpųbŀįčǻň, řěčěňțŀỳ șǻįđ ħě įș“ǿpěň țǿ đįșčųșșįǿňș” ǿň țħě įșșųě.

Țħįș ỳěǻř, țħě fįģħț ǿvěř țħě mįňįmųm ẅǻģě ẅįŀŀ țǻķě pŀǻčě ẅħěň ěvěřỳ șěǻț įň țħěĿěģįșŀǻțųřě įș ųp fǿř ěŀěčțįǿň.

Ǻșșěmbŀỳẅǿmǻň Ŀįňđǻ Řǿșěňțħǻŀ, ǻ Mǻňħǻțțǻň Đěmǿčřǻț ẅħǿ șųppǿřțș ǻ ẅǻģěįňčřěǻșě, șǻįđ įț ẅǻș fǻįř ģǻmě fǿř Đěmǿčřǻțș čǻmpǻįģňįňģ ǻģǻįňșț Řěpųbŀįčǻňș țǿ ųșěțħěįř ǿppǿșįțįǿň țǿ ǻ ħįģħěř ẅǻģě ǻģǻįňșț țħěm.

“Pěǿpŀě ǻŀẅǻỳș șțǻřț ǿff bỳ șǻỳįňģ ‘țħįș čǻň’ț pǻșș, țħǻț čǻň’ț pǻșș,’ įf șǿměțħįňģ’ș ħǻřđ țǿđǿ,” șħě șǻįđ. “Bųț ǻ ŀǿț ǿf țħįňģș ħǻppěň įň Ǻŀbǻňỳ țħǻț șųřpřįșěș ěvěřỳǿňě.”

Șǿmě Řěpųbŀįčǻňș șǻįđ țħěỳ ǻřě věħěměňțŀỳ ǿppǿșěđ.

“İț ẅǿųŀđ bě ǻ đįșǻșțěř, pǻřțįčųŀǻřŀỳ fǿř ųpșțǻțě Ňěẅ Ỳǿřķ,” șǻįđ Ěđ Čǿx, čħǻįřmǻň ǿf țħěșțǻțě Řěpųbŀįčǻň Pǻřțỳ. “Țħįș įș ǻŀŀ đřįvěň bỳ Čųǿmǿ’ș pěřșǿňǻŀ ǻmbįțįǿňș ǻňđ pǿŀįțįčș,ňǿț bỳ pǿŀįčỳ.”

Șųppǿřțěřș ǿf ǻ ẅǻģě įňčřěǻșě șǻỳ įț ẅįŀŀ ħěŀp țħě ěčǿňǿmỳ bỳ ěxpǻňđįňģ țħě mįđđŀě-čŀǻșș, ǻňđ țħǻț čįțįěș țħǻț ħǻvě běģųň pħǻșįňģ įň ǻ $15 ẅǻģě ħǻvěň’ț șųffěřěđ fǿř įț.

İň Ňěẅ Ỳǿřķ, ẅǻģěș fǿř ǻbǿųț 100,000 ěmpŀǿỳěěș įň fǻșț-fǿǿđ čħǻįň řěșțǻųřǻňțșșțǻțěẅįđě ẅįŀŀ įňčřěǻșě Țħųřșđǻỳ, șǻįđ Jǻměș Pǻřřǿțț, đěpųțỳ đįřěčțǿř ǻňđ čħįěfěčǿňǿmįșț ǻț țħě Fįșčǻŀ Pǿŀįčỳ İňșțįțųțě, ǻ ŀįběřǻŀ-ŀěǻňįňģ řěșěǻřčħ ǿřģǻňįżǻțįǿň.

Țħǿșě įň țħě řěșțǻųřǻňț įňđųșțřỳ, pǻřțįčųŀǻřŀỳ įň șmǻŀŀěř-șčǻŀě ǿpěřǻțįǿňș, șǻįđ țħěỳ ǻřěpǻřțįčųŀǻřŀỳ ħǻřđ ħįț. “İț’ș řěǻŀŀỳ čřěǻțįňģ qųįțě ǻ čřįșįș įň țħě fįňě-đįňįňģ įňđųșțřỳ,” șǻįđŘǿběřț Bǿǿķmǻň, čǿųňșěŀ țǿ țħě Ňěẅ Ỳǿřķ Čįțỳ Ħǿșpįțǻŀįțỳ Ǻŀŀįǻňčě, ǻň įňđųșțřỳ ģřǿųp.

Țħě įňčřěǻșě įň țħě țįppěđ mįňįmųm ẅǻģě ẅįŀŀ fųřțħěř ěxǻčěřbǻțě țħě đįffěřěňčě įň pǻỳběțẅěěň șěřvěřș ǻňđ čǿǿķș ǻňđ đįșħẅǻșħěřș, ħě șǻįđ.

Țħě Ňěẅ Ỳǿřķ Șțǻțě Řěșțǻųřǻňț Ǻșșǿčįǻțįǿň, ǻ țřǻđě ģřǿųp, șěňț ǻ ŀěțțěř Țųěșđǻỳ țǿ Mř.Čųǿmǿ ǻňđ ǿțħěř ģǿvěřňměňț ǿffįčįǻŀș șěěķįňģ ǻ fįvě-ỳěǻř fřěěżě įň țħě mįňįmųm ẅǻģěfǿř țįppěđ ẅǿřķěřș. “Ẅě șįmpŀỳ čǻňňǿț ẅěǻțħěř ǻ čǿňțįňųǿųș bǻřřǻģě ǿf ŀǻbǿř čǿșțįňčřěǻșěș,” șǻįđ țħě ŀěțțěř, ẅħįčħ ẅǻș șįģňěđ bỳ mǿřě țħǻň 100 řěșțǻųřǻňț ǿẅňěřș.

Fǿř měmběřș ǿf țħě Ňěẅ Ỳǿřķ Șțǻțě Ħǿșpįțǻŀįțỳ & Țǿųřįșm Ǻșșǿčįǻțįǿň, ǻ ħǿțěŀ țřǻđěģřǿųp, țħě įňčřěǻșįňģ țįppěđ ẅǻģě “įș fǿřčįňģ bųșįňěșș ǿẅňěřș țǿ ŀǿǿķ ǻț ǿvěřǻŀŀǿpěřǻțįǿňș ǻňđ șțǻffįňģ ňěěđș ŀįķě ňěvěř běfǿřě,” șǻįđ Mǻřķ Đǿřř, țħě ǻșșǿčįǻțįǿň’ș vįčěpřěșįđěňț.

Ħěňřỳ’ș ǻț țħě Fǻřm, ǻ řěșțǻųřǻňț ǻț Bųțțěřmįŀķ Fǻŀŀș İňň įň țħě Ħųđșǿň Vǻŀŀěỳ, pŀǻňș țǿ

řǻįșě měňų přįčěș, șǻįđ ǿẅňěř Řǿběřț Pǿŀŀǿčķ.

“Ẅě’ŀŀ přǿbǻbŀỳ ħǻvě țǿ řǻįșě ǿųř čǿșțș ǿf fǿǿđ ǻňđ ħǻvě șmǻŀŀěř pǿřțįǿňș ǿf přǿțěįňș ǿňțħě měňų,” ħě șǻįđ. “Țħǻț’ș ẅħǻț mǿșț pěǿpŀě ǻřě đǿįňģ.”

Fěřňǻňđǿ Pǻřěđěș, ẅħǿ șǻįđ ħě čųřřěňțŀỳ ěǻřňș $7 ǻň ħǿųř, pŀųș țįpș, mǻķįňģ đěŀįvěřįěșǿň ǻ bįčỳčŀě fǿř Đųňħįŀŀ Čǻfě & Čǻțěřěřș įň Mįđțǿẅň, ẅěŀčǿměđ țħě ěxpěčțěđ 50-čěňț-ǻň-ħǿųř řǻįșě.

“İț’ș ģǿǿđ ňěẅș,” șǻįđ Mř. Pǻřěđěș, 39, ẅħǿ ŀįvěș įň Břǿǿķŀỳň ǻňđ șǻįđ ħě pŀǻňș țǿ ųșě țħěěxțřǻ mǿňěỳ fǿř șųbẅǻỳ fǻřě ǻňđ ǿțħěř țħįňģș țħǻț ħǻvě řįșěň įň přįčě. “Ǻňỳ pěňňỳčǿųňțș, řįģħț?”

Ẅřįțě țǿ Čǿřįňňě Řǻměỳ ǻț Čǿřįňňě.Řǻměỳ@ẅșj.čǿm ǻňđ Mįķě Vįŀěňșķỳ ǻțmįķě.vįŀěňșķỳ@đǿẅjǿňěș.čǿm

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NY FastFood Wage Hike Gets More Legal Heat dailycaller.com /2016/02/09/fastfoodgroupbashesdiscriminativeminimumwagelaw/

  McDonald's protest (Photo by Andrew Burton/Getty Images)   

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A prominent franchise group submitted a legal brief Monday supporting a lawsuit challenging the state of New Yorkfor enacting a $15 minimum wage for fastfood workers.

The International Franchise Association (IFA) argued in its legal brief that industryspecific minimum wagediscriminates against business owners. The National Restaurant Association first announced the lawsuit Dec. 9after having its petition rejected by the New York Industrial Board of Appeals. The National Federation forIndependent Business also joined the legal brief in support of the lawsuit.

“Applying a new mandatory minimum wage increase to a narrow group of businesses significantly violates both theU.S. Constitution as well as fundamentals tenants of fairness,” IFA President Robert Cresanti said. “It creates anunlevel playing field for owners who provide important entry level jobs and valuable training for millions of workersacross the state of New York.”

The Fast Food Wage Board was formed May 20 to study and make policy recommendations, and gives Gov.Andrew Cuomo the ability to bypass the state legislature to initiate industryspecific minimum wage increases. Thedecision will gradually increase the minimum wage to $15 an hour for fastfood workers.

“If Governor Cuomo wishes to advance a wage increase, it should cover all of New York’s businesses,” Cresantiadded. “Not just a select few.”

The minimum wage crusade has already mounted an offensive on both sides. The Coalition to Save New YorkRestaurants was formed specifically to combat the industry specific increase. IFA is one of a list of membersbelonging to the coalition. Labor unions, however, have been at the forefront is supporting the mandate throughrallies and media marketing campaigns.

Supporters say the $15 minimum wage will help the poor by allowing them to more easily afford basic necessities

while critics say it may actually hurt the poor by limiting job opportunities.

while critics say it may actually hurt the poor by limiting job opportunities.

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40

COSTS & BUDGETING

8 Tips for Dealing with Minimum WageHikes

Olivia Terenzio, December 15, 2015

byOpenTable

Minimum wage is on the rise in areas across the country, challenging restaurants facing

a spike in their labor cost. The actual cost increases vary by restaurant and by brand,

but here’s one rule of thumb: for every dollar increase in minimum wage, restaurants

will need to take 1.25 to 1.5% in price to cover the increase.

That’s what we learned talking to Mark Kuperman, President of Consulting Services for

Revenue Management Solutions, a company that advises restaurants and hospitality

firms on optimum margin management. Mark oversees a group of consultants and

analysts serving a range of restaurant clients, from QSR to fine dining.

Currently, there are multiple states facing minimum wage changes, including Rhode

Island, New York, Maryland, Nebraska, and Arkansas. Here, Mark shares some of his top

tips to help restaurants manage rising labor costs — without losing guests’ trust.

Spread price increases across multiple markets.

“In many ways it’s not the segment that has the different challenges as much as the

ownership type,” says Mark.

For example, he worked with one chain of 200 restaurants, 40 of which were in

California. That brand had the opportunity to spread price changes across their entire

system rather than focusing specifically on their California locations. On the flip side,

California-only operators don’t have the luxury of passing on smaller increases across

multiple locations and states.

“With multi-unit operators, they don’t have to think about pricing all of their stores the

same,” Mark adds. As long as there’s enough distance between locations — five or ten

miles, roughly — you have the opportunity to test different price points.

Consider near-minimum wage employees.

Interestingly, minimum wage employees aren’t the most affected group when it comes

to the laws. Instead, much of the conversation revolves around “near-minimum wage

employees” — not the person making $7.25 an hour, but the one making $8.25.

In the U.S., Mark says, 3 million people are at minimum wage, or roughly 2.3% of all

people making wages. The number of people making near-minimum wage is much

higher, at 20.6 million.

“What really happens isn’t so much that the people who are making $7.25 an hour are

seeing their wages go up,” he explains. “It’s more that there’s this ongoing wage

compression. Someone’s making $3 above minimum wage, and then minimum wage

goes up by a dollar, and now all of the sudden they’re only making $2 above minimum

wage.”

With restaurants focused on recruiting top talent, they have to be competitive with

wages. That wage compression described ultimately impacts their ability to do so as

they aim to differentiate themselves from other employers.

Start making changes early & incrementally.

Start making changes early & incrementally.

One upside of minimum wage changes is that owners and operators know far in

advance when they are going to take place. If you’re going to raise menu prices to

compensate, Mark recommends starting early, making small, incremental changes six

months in advance.

Many brands decide they are going to raise prices by 2% for the year, for example, and

they do it all at once. Mark advises possibly taking even more (say, 2.5%) but breaking it

up into increments of half a percent or so. “Customers aren’t likely to notice a

significant change if they’re biting off small increments.”

At the same time, “there is no better time to make price changes than when the

minimum wage changes,” he says. Since new laws are being discussed and reported in

the media, the public is aware of the pressures and everyone is making changes across

the board.

Make sure the timing is right to raise prices.

On a similar note, it’s also important to consider the time of year when making price

changes.

In general, Mark says the best time to increase prices is going into the holidays, starting

in October, and going into the summertime. Those are periods when people tend to

have less price sensitivity. Less ideal times are in January (right a⸸㠳er the holidays, when

credit card bills are coming in) and when people are heading back to school in

September (also an expensive time).

But remember, those are generalizations. Mark also worked with a salad chain that was

extremely successful making price increases in January, when New Year’s resolutions

were top of mind. Another good time? A⸸㠳er a restaurant remodel, when the guest

experience has improved significantly.

Influence guests’ decisions without changing prices.

Influence guests’ decisions without changing prices.

Of course, there are plenty of creative solutions to dealing with rising costs besides

increasing prices. Highlighting your highest-margin items on your menu can influence

purchase behavior without any fundamental structural changes.

Mark recommends listing your highest-margin items on the top and bottom of your

menu list and burying the lower-margin ones in between. Since customers tend to

remember the first and last items they see, you want to make those visible.

One word of caution here: don’t lead with your highest-priced item in a category, or

people may completely opt out of the whole category. “Let’s say you’re looking at the

steak menu category and your highest-margin item is your porterhouse steak. They go,

I’m not even going to look at steaks because the first item on the steak menu is $45.”

Offer unique ingredients and dishes.

On restaurant menus there are a handful of “known-value” items — guests have a sense

of what they should cost (think cheeseburgers). These items are staples across different

segments, and customers are familiar with them.

Then there are dishes that are specific to your restaurant, that guests can’t find

anywhere else. These are the items where you have the most pricing power, because

they are unique to your brand; customers can’t associate a specific value to those

items. Do something to differentiate your restaurant and menu, and you automatically

have some leverage when pricing your menu.

The same goes for ingredients. “You o⸸㠳en see that one of the levers to get people to

spend more on the menu is giving more description to the item,” says Mark. Calling out

local or specialty ingredients can raise a dish’s profile and influence guests to spend

more.

Avoid introducing new charges.

Avoid introducing new charges.

In general, Mark advises clients to avoid introducing new ways that customers have to

pay them, such as packaging fees for carry-out orders. “A lot of times what we see is

that when someone looks at a check, it’s not that the check was $85, it’s that they were

charged $1 for this menu item,” he says.

Asking your guests to pay for something that they feel should be included can raise a

red flags — too-expensive so⸸㠳 drinks or bread, for example. 

Actually, sometimes removing menu items can be an effective tactic. Mark points to one

pizza chain he worked with that offered five different cheese pizzas: plain cheese,

Margherita, four-cheese, etc. He recommended removing their plain cheese pizza, only

making it if customers asked for it specifically. Since that one was priced at $9.99 and

the next lowest cheese pizza was $11.99, the company moved a huge chunk of

customers into a more premium product that better represented their brand, without

raising prices.

Be careful trying to re-train your customers.

Mark emphasizes that restaurants should be careful any time they try to revamp their

brand, changing their service style or any other expectations guest have of them.

Speaking of Danny Meyer’s decision to eliminate tipping at his New York City

restaurants, Mark says, “I’d ask myself, am I trying to re-train my customers? To an

extent, the answer is yes: I’m trying to re-train how my customers read the value on the

menu. I think it’s going to be really interesting to see, as more brands are testing that

out, if it does influence frequency and purchase behavior.”

Photo Credit: Erin Kunkel

Jan 25, 2016

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Sullivision.com chief executiveJim Sullivan

Employee turnover: What’s the worst that couldhappen?Industry leaders must stop shrugging off skyhigh turnover rates

Jim Sullivan

Jim Sullivan is a keynote speaker at foodservice leadership conferences worldwide. His newest bookFundamentals is available at Amazon or Sullivision.com. Check out his leadership video series atNRN.com. This article does not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors or management ofNation’s Restaurant News.

“If every other area of our operations remained at the

current level of performance, what is one area where

change would have the greatest impact?” –Chris

McChesney, The 4 Disciplines of Execution

Last month, this column addressed the abysmal, 110

percent average annual turnover that our industry suffers.

I detailed the astronomical cost in sales dollars, real dollars

and managerial focus that this churn causes, and

suggested specific strategies to reduce that sorry statistic.

In a nutshell: our industry’s CEOs and VPs and

associations need to stop shrugging off the skyhigh hourly

churn as “the cost of doing business” and elevate the issue

to the same importance as food safety. At the end of the day what is the foodservice

industry, after all, if not a people business? I’d like to once again elaborate on the topic.

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It’s no secret that most foodservice execs, owners and association heads ignore the 110

percent churn rate entirely and focus instead on another peoplerelated issue: the $15 an

hour minimum wage. Doomsday disciples warn that this will be the death of our industry.

I believe it’s just another storm blowing through.

“Our industry meets challenges headon,” Denny’s CEO John Miller said at the recent

Global Best Practices Conference sponsored by TDn2K in Dallas. “We survived the

smoking ban, numerous but errant views on nutrition and labeling requirements which

were predicted to irreparably harm our industry. Yet today we lead in nutritional

understanding and in many ways have come out the other side even stronger.”

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He’s right. We will survive. And let’s not forget all the other issues that were predicted to

kill our business, including the smoking ban, tip credit tax, menu labeling, 50percent

meal deduction, oil prices, stricter drinking and driving laws, and even the cholesterolin

eggs hysteria. Each of those issues was surely going to shrink our industry smaller than

the period that ends this sentence.

But it didn’t happen.

And we will certainly weather the current gale blowing our way. So here’s an idea: since

the $15 an hour minimum wage seems inevitable at this juncture, what if we were to

deploy the same amount of time, money and resources we’re investing in fighting that

issue into building sustainable development programs that retain our staff and build

more leadership capacity in our units and brands? What if we focused instead on cutting

the 110percent industry turnover in half and banking the six figures it saves each unit

annually in recruitment and replacement costs? But we continue whistling past the

graveyard, and soon the chickens will come home to roost.

Apologies for mixing metaphors, but that is exactly what’s happening. Younger workforce

members now seem to prefer retail jobs over foodservice jobs because of both pay scale

and work environment, a fiveyear pattern going back to 2011 that shows no signs of

abating in 2016 and 2017. This aversion trend will ultimately prove crippling for our

industry if we don’t do something now. Three suggestions:

Pursue the bright spots. Bestinclass operators exist relative to high employee tenure

(and lower employee turnover) like Starbucks, Shake Shack, Chipotle, The Cheesecake

Factory, Ivar’s Seafood Restaurants and ChickfilA, among others. They made conscious

decisions to invest more in development, career pathing, pay, and building cultures of

kindness between crews and supervisors. The results are striking compared to the rest of

the industry. So take the best ideas from the best practitioners, then edit and amplify in

your own company.

Eliminate FIO jobs. Reexamine and improve the process in which you orient and

onboard new employees. Many entrylevel (and even multiunit level) positions in our

industry are “Figure It Out,” or FIO, jobs where the responsibility to succeed and grow in

the role — after minimal “orientation” — is left up to the team member instead of

assigning a mentor or manager.

How do you think restaurants can reduce the hourly turnover rate?

Join the conversation in the comments below.

Use inversion to define the cost of inaction. The leadership process of inversion is

a practice commonly used in Silicon Valley companies like Google and LinkedIn to assess

the why of taking action and the cost of inaction. Take a problem like employee turnover.

Instead of asking, “What can I do to minimize it?” ask instead, “What will happen if I

don’t minimize it?” Make a thorough list with your leadership team:

• Employee churn will remain high

• Managers will have less time to lead teams and serve customers

• Service will suffer, sales will drop, costs will rise

• Training schedules will increase and be strained

• A bigger percentage of gross sales will flow to cover turnover costs instead of bottom

lines and bonuses

• Management turnover will rise

• Team performance and productivity will drop due to constantly having to train new

people

There is no guarantee that our future will be better, only that it will be different. Still, we

have a choice: make the future happen or let it happen. Have a bias for action. Identify

and minimize stress points in each job. Offer your employees clearer paths for better pay,

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recognition and responsibility. Preach what you practice and know that discipline is the

key. In the words of the imitable Godfather of Soul, James Brown, “If you stay ready, you

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davebarneson Jan 26, 2016

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Jim is spot on.As an nerd consumer, I read every Yelp review written in Denver every day.Service complaints are the #1 issue.

jdlukon Feb 17, 2016

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Jim is correct. Most people are dumped into the job and left to figure it out. If they do somethingwrong, it is usually pointed out none too gently because everyone is working frantically to getthe customer served and on to the next one. Most people go into a job not ignorant of what todo but how is it done at that location. Some training on how that restaurant or fast foodestablishment does things as well as important food safety rules to watch, can make things runsmoother for not only the new hire but those who have to work around them the first few days. Ihave never found any situation where the saying "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound ofcure" does not work. No matter the job.

Published on CNS News (http://www.cnsnews.com (http://www.cnsnews.com))

Restaurant Industry Official: ‘Not Every Job Is Thereto Sustain a Family of Four’(CNSNews.com) – Commenting on the negative effects of raising the minimum wage through federallegislation, an official with the National Restaurant Association said that “not every job is there to sustain afamily of four.”

At a Feb. 9 panel discussion on Capitol Hill sponsored by the freemarket Competitive Enterprise Institute(CEI), National Restaurant Association Senior Vice President Alfonso Amador said, “There seems to be aperception that every job needs to be able to maintain a family of four. Not every job is there to sustain afamily of four.”

CEI held the event to discuss “regulatory threats to flexible employment and worker freedom.”  The NationalRestaurant Association is a trade association that advocates on behalf of the foodservice industry.

Last April, Sen. Patrick Murphy (DDel.) and Rep. Bobby Scott (DVa.) introduced the Raise the MinimumWage Act (https://patrickmurphy.house.gov/uploadedfiles/raise_the_wage_act_fact_sheet.pdf) [1] inCongress to increase the national wage from its current $7.25 to $12 in the preceding five years.

Ryan Young, a CEI fellow, argued against a January 2015 20state raise in the minimum wage.

“Millions of workers are getting a raise, but those raises come at a cost. Other workers directly pay for thoseraises through reduced hours, firings, benefit cuts, and other harms. Those workers and wouldbe workershave few defenders,” Young wrote (https://cei.org/blog/20statesraiseminimumwagehappynewyear) [2]on the CEI’s website.

On its website, the National Restaurant Association takes a stance against mandatory wage increases. 

“As businesses struggle to recover from the economic recession, dramatic, mandatory wage increases wouldplace yet another financial burden on business owners who are already feeling the pressures of a weakeconomy and additional costs and regulatory complexity associated with the Affordable Care Act,” the websitereads (http://www.restaurant.org/advocacy/MinimumWage) [3].

A spokeswoman for the National Employment Law Project (NELP), a lowwage worker advocacy organization,replied to Amador’s statement.

“Far from providing wages on which someone could support a family of four, the restaurant industry seems topride itself on providing wages that can’t even support a single adult working full time,” NELP’s federaladvocacy coordinator Judy Conti wrote in an email to CNSNews.com.

“According to the Bureau of Labor statistics, average wages for the vast majority of those who work as cooks,servers, bartenders, dishwashers and other nonmanagerial employees is about $10.25 per hour, or anaverage annual salary (assuming no vacations or time off) of about $21,000. For a single person in mostparts of the country, that isn’t enough to cover the basics like housing, food and transportation,” said Conti.

The National Restaurant Association’s data, however, offer a different perspective on raising the minimumwage.

Restaurants “already devote about a third of their sales to wages and benefits. Pretax profit margins forrestaurants typically range from 3 to 6 percent. Many restaurateurs would be forced to limit hiring, increaseprices, cut employee hours or implement a combination of all three to pay for the wage increase,” the websitereads.  

“According to National Restaurant Association research, 58 percent of restaurant operators increased menuprices and 41 percent reduced employee hours following the 2007 minimum wage increase.”

Source URL: http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/josergonzalez/natlrestaurantassociationseniorvpraisingminimumwagenotevery0

[Mayor Murray signing Seattle's minimum wage legislation. Photo: Mayor Ed Murray/Facebook []]

Last week, Seattle's City Council unanimously voted to raise the city's minimum wage to $15 an hour. The decision has the restaurant and bar

industry's full attention. Struggling to come to grips with the changes, some owners are considering hiking up menu prices. Others may end up

adding a service charge [0] to guest checks.

The plan includes two paths with different stages [1] for businesses to reach the $15 mark, with challenges to the wage hike continuing to

emerge, including this charter amendment [2].

Ahead of what will undoubtedly be a shift for the local food scene, Eater asked Seattle-area restaurant owners to weigh in on the impending

wage increase. Here's what Angela Stowell, Brendan McGill, and others have to say about how it might change the dining habits of residents

and impact the future of restaurants.

Manu Alfau

Chef/Owner, La Bodega

I wish they would've done a little more research on how it would affect small businesses. I am all for people making more money, but I think it's

meant for larger corporations like McDonald's, Target, Walmart to have this wage hike.

I don't think it's a bad thing but for smaller businesses, only the super strong will survive. It will mean that only owners who are willing and able

to work every day at their own businesses to reduce labor costs will survive. I also have a five year lease, so I'll be able to make a decision about

whether to sign or and go forward or not, but other businesses might not have that.

HOT TOPICS

Restaurateurs Weigh In on Seattle's $15 Minimum Wageby Sara Billups Jun 10, 2014, 3:06a @hellobillups

Jeremy Hardy

Owner, Coastal Kitchen and Mioposto

This is a game changer. The myriad of unintended consequences it too complex to really understand; even for restaurant veterans. There was

incredible anger generated by a series of callous, recession causing, big-bonused bad actors on Wall Street while the rest of us were falling into

the recession abyss. Those guys in Wall Street must be chuckling—like the invasion of Iraq the 15Now folks missed the target by about 3,000

miles. But we sit in the crossfire.

As a lifelong liberal I have always been angry when businesses and politicians decry the loss of jobs over a CPI $.40 minimum wage increase

because that is ridiculous. This is different. We cannot survive if we continue doing business as usual. I hope the public will continue to

support their favorite spots while everybody figures this thing out. We are going to adjust using all of the tools at our disposal; pricing,

reducing menu offerings, look at operating hours, reducing labor where we can and certainly not opening another business in our beloved

Seattle. Our business model will need to change. In a business whose goal is "to build community one relationship at a time" this reduction in

labor is going to make that even more difficult.

We have raised 100's of thousands for schools, Lifelong AIDS Alliance, Mercy Corps, tsunami survivors, Darfur, the victims of Oso, and

countless other non-profits over the years while providing health insurance, education reimbursements, and ongoing training for our employees.

It falls somewhere between feeling sad and feeling betrayed that this grenade has been dropped on us.

Brendan McGill

Chef/Owner, Hitchcock, Hitchcock Deli

I think what people need to realize is that the money will have to come from somewhere. With a group like mine, where ethics in sourcing come

before profits, we run a very slim margin. To pay my staff more, I need to either buy worse food or raise my prices, and I'm not willing to start

buying commodity meats or fish from larger, questionably managed fisheries.

I'm supportive of livable wages and am honestly somewhat excited for this social experiment. If one hour of minimum wage can be used as a

metric, things will go fine. If a roast beef sandwich made with high quality bread, hormone and antibiotic-free beef and aioli with organic and

free range eggs now costs about one hour of minimum wage, my estimate is that after the wage hikes it will still cost about one hour of

minimum wage. My concern is that someone who currently makes $40K/year and isn't affected by the wage hike won't be willing to start

paying more for all their goods and services. As it affects the delis, I'm willing to see how it rolls.

I'm a little more concerned about our full-service restaurant. Without a tip credit or total compensation being considered for employees, we will

have to dramatically change the way we staff, especially in the front of house. We operate on a very thin margin as it is, attempting to bring

the finest foods to the table that our pool of sales allows. I imagine new businesses opening will run counter operations where guests grab their

own silverware and bus their own tables. It's going to be more difficult where there is an expectation of service. What happened to all the hosts

and bussers? Servers will be running their asses off, and from what I hear the public sentiment is shifting to "why tip? they already make $15 an

hour." Servers will be working harder for less money with less support; I wouldn't expect service to improve around town.

Bottom line, labor can only be a function of sales. If somebody sees a "busy" restaurant at lunch, with 150 eaters dining there throughout the

lunch hour, and each person spends $15 dollars, the restaurant just rang $2,250. If labor comprises significantly more than 30 percent, the

restaurant won't be in business for long. So that allows 675 total for labor for the day, before the L&I taxes we pay that allows $550 or so. At $15

[0] http://www.esquire.com/blogs/food-for-men/seattle-tipping[1] http://seattletimes.com/html/localnews/2023753163_wagevotexml.html[2] http://seattletimes.com/html/localnews/2023779388_15challengesxml.html

© 2016 Vox Media, Inc. All rights reserved.

an hour, that allows 36 labor hours, which means four people can work a full day. This assumes that everyone is making the new minimum. Now

look around in a busy restaurant serving 150 people in a service—do you see more than 4 employees? Of course you do. The new math breaks

the system. There seems to be a fallacy that instead of lining our richie-rich pockets, business owners will simply break off a little more for

their employees. I barely get paid $15 an hour.

And the thing is, most of my employees already make $15 an hour, if not much more in the servers' case—it may be a base of $10-$14, plus tips

from the pool, staff meals, or vacation pay. Without those factors being considered and fighting to stay in the black (as if every restaurant isn't

perpetually fighting to stay in the black), we won't be able to show our staff the respect of allowing them an espresso drink whenever they're

dragging, or to use the same high-quality foods for staff meals that we offer our guests. I've enjoyed not running a corporate ship the way the

large hotels I've worked in operate: highly punitive where cost-control is concerned. For them it's about maximizing profits, but for me it's

going to be about staying in business.

Angela Stowell

CFO/Owner, Ethan Stowell Restaurants

We fully support an increase of the minimum wage to $15, however, we feel that all W2 income should be considered when calculating that

wage. Restaurants work on very small margins and Washington already has the highest minimum wage in the country at $9.32 an hour. Under

this plan, servers and bartenders, who already make an average of $35-$40 and hour in W2 income, will see an immediate increase in their pay

while the cooks, who make around $15 an hour, will have stagnant wages for upwards of seven years.

The 15Now movement has repeatedly declared that this is about big corporations like Burger King and Walmart, but it is very unlikely that these

companies will suffer (there aren't actually any Walmarts in the city of Seattle anyway). Local, independent restaurants and retailers will be

the ones who are really going to struggle and some will go out of business. At the very least, customers across the board are going to have to

pay more to accommodate the new wage. Some people will be okay with that but I worry that our guests will start spending less and going

out less as they adjust to higher prices and their own wage compression.

RELATED ITEMS TOP, BRENDAN MCGILL, 15 MINIMUM WAGE, ANGELA STOWELL, INDUSTRY TALK, JEREMY HARDY, MANU ALFAU