Wages
Maine – Legislation is on its way to the governor’s desk that would increase the state minimum wage to $15/hr on Jan.1 2024 and then tie annual increases thereafter to the cost of living index. The bill has been controversial and only passed the house by a one vote majority. It is unclear whether the governor will sign the bill. More details.
Pennsylvania – Legislation to raise the state minimum wage to $15/hr by 2026 and then index it to inflation thereafter advanced out of a house committee on a party-line vote. If passed, the bill also would set the tip credit at 40 percent making the server wage $9.00/hr. If the bill were to advance out of the house, it would face a very uphill battle in the Republican-controlled senate and as a result, leaders may try to include it in the state budget package. More details.
Anaheim, CA – The city council passed an ordinance setting up a Sept. 12 special election where voters will decide on establishing a $25/hr minimum wage for hotel workers and then tied to inflation going forward. The vote was in deference to an initiative supported by the Unite Here Local 11 that received enough signatures to qualify for the ballot. In addition to the wage piece, it would also limit the square footage hotel maids can clean to 4,000 square feet per day in 8 hours. If they are required to work more, they would be paid twice their hourly rate for their entire shift. It would also require all rooms to be cleaned each night that they are occupied. More details.
New York, NY – The city will become the first in the country to implement a minimum wage for food delivery workers, as much as tripling the current earnings of the city’s roughly 60,000 drivers. Starting July 12, companies like Uber Eats and Door Dash will be required to pay delivery workers at least $17.96/hr, a sharp increase from their current average hourly rate of $7.09/hr, without tips. The new rule, announced this week by New York Mayor Eric Adams (D) and the New York City Department of Consumer and Worker Protection, also calls for an increase to $19.96/hr in 2025. More details.
Labor Policy
NLRB – The Board issued a ruling making it more likely for workers to be considered employees rather than contractors under federal law. Overturning a ruling issued when the Board was under Republican control, the decision effectively increases the number of workers – like drivers, construction workers or janitors – who have a federally protected right to unionize or take other collective action, such as protesting unsafe working conditions. In 2019, when the board was controlled by appointees of President Trump, it elevated one consideration – workers’ chances to make more money based on their business savvy, often described as “entrepreneurial opportunity” – above the others. In its decision in 2019, the Board said that a ruling during the Obama administration had improperly subordinated the question of money making opportunities. That 2019 ruling appeared to be a victory for gig companies like Uber and Lyft, whose supporters have argued that ride-share drivers should be considered contractors in part because of the opportunities they have for potential profit by determining which neighborhoods to work in. More details.
New York – Wage theft legislation advanced out of the senate that, among other things, could freeze the assets of a restaurant operator and create personal liability for employers. The bill would create a pre-judgement writ of attachment, creating a lien in the case of an accusation of wage theft, essentially penalizing the employer first and then determining if the accusations have any merit. The bill is a replacement for similar legislation, the SWEAT Act, that was derailed in recent weeks. The bill now moves to the assembly. More details.
Labor Activism
Peet’s Coffee – Workers at three different Bay-area locations filed initial petitions for union elections covering locations in Berkeley and Oakland. The workers are organizing as members of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) and are advocating for better working conditions, safer working conditions, better pay, increased benefits, and greater worker autonomy. The petition has to be approved by the National Labor Relations Board and then an election date will be set. More details.
Alcohol
Connecticut – The governor signed legislation making cocktails to-go permanent. The current law allowing for the policy was set to expire next summer. More details.
Key Takeaways
- New York City’s continued interest in accommodating sectoral bargaining should be watched closely. The city’s new wage law raising the minimum wage for food delivery drivers to almost $20/hr by 2025 should be looked at as a possible opening act for future action directed squarely at restaurant workers. The current city minimum wage for all workers is $15/hr with a server wage of $10/hr. The arguments will begin that there should be parity among workers and activists will be pursuing a corresponding increase sooner rather than later. Brands should prepare accordingly.
- Next week, the Senate HELP Committee, chaired by Sen. Bernie Sanders (D-VT), will hold a markup on a slew of labor bills including the PRO Act, paycheck fairness legislation and a paid sick leave bill. While the bills have little chance of ever becoming law, Sanders will use the markup has a platform to advance the interests of the labor community and conversely demonize businesses – with likely significant attention given to entry-level employers. Brands should be prepared for yet another public attack on the business model.
Podcast
Check out our Working Lunch podcast each week that includes further analysis into these legislative issues, policy, politics and much more. You can find Working Lunch on the Restaurant Business online website, SoundCloud, iTunes and Spotify.