A sea of pink and green T-shirts filled the Montgomery County Council chambers in Rockville Tuesday as a couple hundred community members, primarily service workers and restaurant owners, gathered to share praise and opposition to a controversial bill that would raise the base minimum wage for tipped workers, if passed.
Restaurant workers who support the legislation wore hot pink shirts with “One Fair Wage” on the front. Those in opposition wore kelly green shirts with a message of “Save Our Tips.” The Rockville chambers were split about evenly between the two sides.
Currently, servers and other workers who rely on tips are required by county law to be paid $4 per hour before tips. The county’s minimum wage for non-tipped workers is $16.70 for employers with 51 or more employees, $15 for employers with 50 or fewer employees and $14.50 for employers with 10 or fewer employees. In neighboring Prince George’s County, the base minimum wage before tips is $3.63. Last week, the Prince George’s County Council opted to table a similar piece of legislation.
Almost 40 speakers shared their views on the legislation Tuesday, following a public demonstration outside the building. The rally was mostly peaceful apart from a scuffle involving two protestors from opposing sides. Emergency responders came to the scene and evaluated those involved without transporting anyone. A participant told Rockville City Police she will not press charges.
Council President Evan Glass (D-At-large)...
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