Protect MO's Minimum Wage for Tipped Employees

Greetings,

 

Don't let politicians in Jefferson City overturn your vote to raise Missouri's Minimum Wage!

 

 

In 2006, 76.4% of Missourians voted to pass Proposition B to raise the wage for ALL Missouri workers, including tipped employees.

 

Now, House Bill 258 is threatening to roll back the minimum wage for tipped employees to that of 15 years ago.

 

We must act NOW! Tell the Special Standing Committee on Workforce Development & Workplace Safety that the citizens of Missouri want to protect the wages of 53,240 tipped employees.

Send a letter to the following decision maker(s):
Your State Senator (if you live in Missouri)

Below is the sample letter:

Subject: Oppose HB 258, Support the Minimum wage for Tipped Empolyees

Dear [decision maker name automatically inserted here],

I am writing to demand that Missouri Legislators preserve the minimum wage increases that voters enacted.

You must stop House Bill 258 and any legislation that would cut the pay of waiters and waitresses. While the house amended this to freeze tipped employees pay at the current rate, that's still a pay cut over the coming years.

When Proposition B passed in 2006, over 1.5 million voters from both political parties sent a clear message. The voters wanted minimum wage workers to get a raise and to have the raise increase with the cost of living. The voters also specifically included food servers and employees who make tips.

A time of economic crisis is the worst time to pull wages out of the pockets of low income Missourians.

Sincerely,

[Your Name]
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What's At Stake:

 

FACT SHEET ON HOUSE BILL 258

Minimum Wage for Tipped Employees

Current hourly minimum wage for tipped employees:  $3.525

Minimum wage for tipped employees proposed under SB 258:  $2.13

Minimum wage for tipped employees 15 years ago, in 1994:  $2.13

Increase in the cost of living since 1994:  66%

Estimated number of waiters and waitresses in Missouri (2007):  53, 2401

Average hourly wage after tips of a waiter/waitress in Missouri (2007):  $16,780 1

Estimated lost wages to waiters and waitresses alone in Missouri if 258 passes:  $155,003,472 2

Percentage of Missourians that voted in favor of increasing minimum wage for food servers and other tipped employees in 2006:  76.4%

Percentage of Missouri counties that voted to raise the minimum wage for tipped employees by a margin 16 points or more:   100%

 

Prepared by Missouri Jobs with Justice,

www.mojwj.org, 314.644.0466

1Bureau of Labor Statistics Website http://www.bls.gov/oes/2007/may/oes353031.htm

2Calculated by assuming that average hourly earnings of waiters and waitresses decreases


Campaign Expiration Date:
April 15, 2009