Wages
No Tax on Tips – The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) unveiled proposed regulations listing nearly seventy jobs that will qualify for the new No Tax on Tips deduction, which was passed as part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBB Act). The agency also provided additional guidance clarifying which tips qualify for the new deduction. The No Tax on Tips Provision, effective 2025 through 2028, allows eligible employees and self-employed workers to deduct “qualified tips” received while working in occupations that customarily and regularly receive tips as specified by the IRS. Under the provision, eligible tipped employees, including those who itemize and do not itemize their taxes, can claim a tax deduction up to $25,000/yr. The deduction is limited based on adjusted income and phases out for those with a modified adjusted gross income of more than $150,000 ($300,000 for joint filers). The proposed rule was published in the Federal Register on Sept. 22nd, and the IRS will receive comments on it until Oct. 23, 2025. More details.
Florida – On Sept. 30, the state’s annual minimum wage increase takes effect, adding another $1/hr to the minimum wage. The current wage is $13/hr for non-tipped employees and $9.98/hr for tipped employees. The increase will take it to $14/hr for non-tipped employees and $10.98/hr for tipped employees. In Nov. 2020, Florida voters passed a constitutional amendment to increase the state’s minimum wage by $1 annually until it reaches $15/hr on Sept. 30, 2026. The minimum wage will then increase annually based on the applicable consumer price index, or CPI-W, starting on Jan. 1, 2028. More details.
Sante Fe, NM – The city council heard the mayor’s proposal to raise the city’s minimum wage from its current $15/hr to $17.50/hr in 2027, following a yearlong assessment. No votes were taken. The proposal would continue to include tips counting toward the wage requirement for workers who usually earn $100 or more per month in tips or commission as well as adjust how the annual CPI adjustment is calculated. The proposal must go through multiple committees before it comes before the full council. More details.
Labor Policy
EEOC – The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has halted cases built on the long-standing legal doctrine of “disparate impact,” which holds that neutral workplace policies can still disproportionately harm certain groups. Civil rights and worker-side advocates say the move strips employees of a vital remedy and is already disrupting cases. An internal memo instructs EEOC staff to conclude those cases by Sept. 30 and issue “right to sue” letters by Oct. 31. Workers have 90 days to file a lawsuit in federal court after they receive their letters. It’s the latest major enforcement shift for the civil rights agency based on executive orders from President Trump. More details.
Colorado – The state supreme court issued a highly anticipated ruling in By the Rockies v. Perez. The ruling clarified that the statute of limitations for claims under the state’s minimum wage law is two years, or three years for a willful violation. By The Rockies is a large franchisee of Hardees and Carl’s, Jr. This employer-friendly ruling reversed a state court of appeals decision holding that plaintiffs have six years to bring such a claim and is welcome news for employers, particularly considering the severe penalties under the state’s wage and hour laws for non-payment of required wages. More details.
Amazon – Attorneys for the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) told a federal judge that the company exercised “overwhelming control” over subcontracted drivers it claimed weren’t its employees. The judge is considering claims that Amazon violated federal labor law by making illegal threats and refusing to negotiate after subcontracted drivers in Palmdale, California, organized with the Teamsters union. A ruling in the Teamsters’ favor could help establish a precedent and encourage unionization at Amazon, which has denied wrongdoing and maintained that it is not the employer of its contract drivers. More details.
Labor Activism
Houston, TX – Approximately 100 unionized workers at the George R. Brown Convention Center will take a strike vote to join hundreds of hotel workers at the neighboring Hilton Americas-Houston who are in the fourth week of their strike. The groups are represented by the same union, UNITE HERE Local 23, and both facilities are owned by Houston First, the city’s local government corporation for tourism and conventions. The groups are demanding a $23/hr wage. Hotel workers are directly employed by Hilton, which they said hasn’t budged from a counteroffer of $17.50/hr (a $1/hr raise from the current base rate). Convention center workers are employed by Levy Premium Food Service, which offers a base rate of $16/hr. The hotel workers’ contract with Hilton expired at the end of June, while the convention center contract runs through the end of Sept. More details.
Aramark – The union representing Fenway Park concession staff has filed a labor complaint against the company, claiming that they retaliated against employees for participating in a July strike and other union activities. In the complaint, filed with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) Sept. 18, UNITE HERE Local 26 accused Aramark management at Fenway of cutting or changing hours, “interrogating” and video recording employees, instructing workers to take off hats with the union logo, and adding additional staff to “dilute the tip pool.” A spokesperson for Aramark said the company had not yet received all the grievances submitted by the union but was “confident our managers did not engage in any retaliatory conduct during or after the strike.” More details.
Food Policy
USDA – The team of federal economists and researchers responsible for producing the government survey that measures hunger in America were put on indefinite paid leave, according to the union that represents the workers. The move comes two days after The Wall Street Journal reported that the Trump administration abruptly canceled the report, which has been produced by the Agriculture Department every year since the mid-1990s. Around a dozen employees, all involved with economic research at the agency, were put on leave according to the union that represents some of the workers. The food insecurity survey is used by policymakers to make funding decisions for food-assistance programs and to evaluate how well those programs work. More details.
Key Takeaway
- Steak n’ Shake continues to position itself as a MAGA-friendly brand. This week Rep. Luna, a close ally of the late Charlie Kirk who started her political career at Turning Point, thanked @SteaknShake on X. In her post, she included a photo of a remembrance billboard for Kirk paid for by Steak n’ Shake Rome (presumably a local franchisee). The brand is clearly focused on elevating itself with the MAGA base which may put it in conflict with other brands (similar to Cracker Barrel).