To Support the WAGES Act

Economic Justice
UUSC signed on to a letter supporting the Working for Adequate Gains for Employment in Services (WAGES) Act, which would raise the minimum wage for tipped employees.

Purpose
The purpose of this action is to push for the passing of the Working for Adequate Gains for Employment in Services (WAGES) Act. Tipped workers' wages are often unpredictable and fluctuate with the day, season, or other factors beyond their control, which creates a large measure of uncertainty in their ability to provide for themselves and their families. Sixty-two percent of tipped workers are women, and 15 percent of restaurant workers, who make up the largest group of tipped workers, live below the federal poverty level, compared to 5.7 percent of the rest of the overall workforce.

The tipped minimum wage has been frozen at its current rate of $2.13 since 1991. This letter voices UUSC's support for the WAGES Act, which would raise the minimum wage of tipped employees from the current level of $2.13 per hour to $3.75 per hour three months after enactment. Thereafter, it would raise the minimum wage of tipped employees to $5.00 per hour in 2011, and 70 percent of minimum wage (but no less than $5.50 per hour) by 2012.