Arizona and Massachusetts voters to decide on minimum wage ballot measures

In Arizona and Massachusetts, voters will decide on ballot measures that could change the minimum wage for tipped workers. The measures reflect a growing debate over the subminimum wage, which allows businesses to pay workers less than the minimum wage as long as customer tips make up the difference. Fourteen states pay the federal minimum for tipped workers, and Arizona employers can pay their tipped workers $3 less hourly than other workers. In Arizona, voters will decide whether to change the minimum for tipped workers to 25% less than the regular minimum wage as long as their pay with tips is $2 above that minimum. In Massachusetts, voters will decide on a measure to incrementally increase the state's tipped worker wage until it meets the regular minimum wage by January 2029. The National Restaurant Association and its state affiliates warn of reduced hours, lower employment, and menu price hikes if employers can't rely on tips to pay their workers. Labor economist Sylvia Allegretto says that between 2012 and 2019, the number of restaurants and people employed at those restaurants grew at a faster clip in the seven states that have a single minimum wage compared to states that pay the federal minimum tipped wage.