New York Voters Across Backgrounds Agree: Food Service Workers Should Earn the Full Minimum Wage Plus Tips
By Anika Dandekar
Currently, food service workers in New York under state law can be paid two-thirds of the minimum wage by their employer. Research shows that tipped workers who are paid the full minimum wage before tips are less likely to be living in poverty than those whose wages are partially reliant on tips. We asked New York voters if they think that tipped workers in bars and restaurants should be paid the full minimum wage before tips by their employers.
Previous polling found strong bipartisan support among New York voters for requiring employers to pay tipped workers in the state the full minimum wage with tips on top. New Data for Progress and One Fair Wage polling shows support for the policy remains high among voters of all parties and state regions.
Paying Service Workers the Full Minimum Wage Before Tips is Extremely Popular in New York
Nearly three-quarters of New York voters (71 percent) would support a bill requiring employers to pay tipped workers the full minimum wage before tips. A bipartisan majority of voters (82 percent of Democrats, 70 percent of Independents, and 55 percent of Republicans) support this policy. This is also true of voters residing in every region of New York represented in this survey: 72 percent in the Finger Lakes region, 67 percent on Long Island, 73 percent in the Mid-Hudson region, 76 percent in New York City, and 62 percent in Western New York support paying tipped workers the full minimum wage plus tips.
Conclusion
Food service workers not only face racial discrimination and sexual harassment when seeking tips, they also are more vulnerable to wage theft by employers than workers in any other sector. At a time where cost of living in New York is ballooning, those earning low wages are struggling to afford basic necessities. These survey findings make clear that New York voters are ready for a policy change when it comes to how their state values food service workers. New York state legislators of all parties and all regions should note that a move to require employers to pay food service workers the full minimum wage with tips on top would be incredibly popular.
Crosstabs for this poll can be found here.
Anika Dandekar (@AnikaDandekar) is a senior analyst at Data for Progress.