In Anti-Democratic Move, the D.C. Council Undermines the Will of D.C. Voters by Rescinding Voter-Approved Initiative 82

The following is a statement from Yannet Lathrop, senior researcher and policy analyst with the National Employment Law Project:

“The D.C. Council’s vote to repeal Initiative 82 is a betrayal of the will of voters who overwhelmingly voted to phase out the subminimum tipped wage in the District. Sadly, this is not the first time the Council has rescinded a voter-approved phase-out of the tipped subminimum wage; it did so in 2018, shortly after a majority of voters approved Initiative 77. With today’s vote, an anti-democratic ethos rears its head in the Council.

“The amendment passed today will replace a policy that was set to fully phase-out the harmful subminimum tipped wage by July 2027, with one that will freeze it at just 75 percent of the minimum wage by 2034. This year’s tipped wage will stay at a mere $10 per hour.

“This new policy will impact an estimated 6,800 servers and bartenders, most of whom do not work at fine dining restaurants and do not earn high tips. An additional 10,700 workers who work in other tipped occupations, such as manicurists, will also be harmed. This pay cut comes at a time when rent is increasingly unaffordable—almost half of D.C. residents struggle to pay rent.

“Tipped workers are a largely female and racially diverse workforce. Today’s vote sets the District of Columbia back from greater gender and racial equity. Requiring tipped workers to depend on tips for the bulk of their earnings puts tipped workers at risk of sexual and other types of harassment.

“The complexity of the tipped wage system makes enforcement a challenge. Wage theft will be a real risk for the 17,000 District tipped workers who the Council has decided to betray with today’s vote.

“Seven states already have a ‘one fair wage’ system, which requires employers to pay tipped workers the full minimum wage as their cash wage, with tips on top. Restaurants in those states have not been harmed and are, in fact, thriving.

“Comparable cities to D.C. either (or both) require a one fair wage, or a higher tipped wage than the meager $10 that the D.C. council approved for this year. The tipped wage in Los Angeles, for example, is $17.87 and equals the full minimum wage; in Minneapolis, it is $15.97 and also equals the full minimum wage; and in Chicago, which is on its way to a one fair wage, it is $12.62.

“Even in cities such as Denver, CO and Phoenix, AZ—where the tipped wage does not equal the full minimum wage—tipped workers currently earn significantly more, in the range of $11.70 to $15.79 before tips. By 2034, the D.C. tipped wage will have fallen behind its peers, including Chicago, Denver, and likely all major West Coast cities.

“We are extremely disappointed and alarmed by Mayor Bowser and the D.C. Council’s deliberate decision to undermine the will of D.C. voters by rescinding voter-approved Initiative 82 and strongly oppose the repeal of the initiative.

“To be explicit, the appetite for fair tipped wages in the District is unlikely to stop with the repeal of Initiative 82. Today, the D.C. Council made a substantial choice to ignore both voters and workers, and instead side with an inordinately greedy industry which has been fighting pro-worker policies for decades.”

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The National Employment Law Project is a non-partisan, not-for-profit organization that conducts research and advocates on issues affecting underpaid and unemployed workers. NELP is the leading national nonprofit working at the federal, state, and local levels to create a good-jobs economy. For more about NELP, visit www.nelp.org.