Plans are underway in the state legislature to phase out the current wage earned by tipped workers in a proposal applauded by labor advocates and denounced by restaurant industry insiders.
Labor and Public Employees Committee Chair Sen. Julie Kushner announced Tuesday that her committee plans to raise a “One Fair Wage” bill that would establish a set minimum wage for all workers, regardless of their tipping status.
In Connecticut, the base wage for bartenders is $8.23 and $6.38 for other tipped staff. This wage is supplemented by a credit that fills the gap between the state minimum wage of $14 and the tipped wage with gratuity earned on the job.
According to the One Fair Wage Organization, California, Oregon, Washington, Nevada, Minnesota, Montana and Arkansas have already passed legislation eliminating tip credits. Michigan will join the list in 2024, and additional campaigns are underway in Michigan, New York, Massachusetts, Illinois, Maine and Washington D.C.
Connecticut Senate President Pro Tempore Martin Looney acknowledged that while the state’s minimum wage has increased since 2019, tipped workers haven’t seen the same incremental rise in base pay.
“When we started to raise the minimum wage, we did not affect the tip wage,” Looney said. “The gap between [the tip wage and minimum wage] was between $6.38 and $10.10 and now it’s between $6.38 and $14, going to $15. So that’s why we need to, I think, look at that again this year.”
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