Would you still tip or tip the same percentage if you knew your server was already making $12 an hour?

That’s the question being asked by a lot of the folks who wait your tables. They’re worried that changes in the minimum-wage laws may actually have a negative effect on the people who earn their living on tips.

Restaurant owners are worried, too. They’re worried that without the tip credit, they’re going to have to cut back. That means fewer jobs on their tables and, for some, it may mean closing their doors entirely.

The tip credit is a mechanism that cushions the difference between the mandatory minimum wage required of employers and the amount earned in tips by wait staff. As long as a server is making good tips, the employer does not have to pitch in to close the gap – or at least not to the same degree.

This is a good deal all the way around, and L.D. 673 is a proposal to restore this balance – by restoring the tip credit.

The negative effects of higher minimum wages are already being reported across the country. Just recently, a study reported a record number of restaurant closures in San Francisco. No restaurants – no jobs.

Assuming that those who support minimum-wage increases have the best intentions, why not adopt a reasonable compromise that serves all constituents? L.D. 673 provides that reasonable compromise.

Jim Bouchard

Brunswick