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The battle over tipping is accelerating in Chicago, where lawmakers could advance a new law as soon as Wednesday requiring restaurants to pay waitstaff the city’s standard minimum wage, regardless of how much they earn in gratuities.
Summary and audio linked here.
Chicago’s political leadership is floating a pension buyout program as evidence it is seriously addressing the city’s thirty-six-billion-dollar unfunded pension liability, but Mark Glennon, founder of the Illinois policy research organization Wirepoints, said that the proposal moves debt from one column to another rather than reducing it, and that the broader fiscal picture facing the city continues to deteriorate across every measurable dimension. Audio here.
Expect no retraction or apology. This what they do.
The state’s existing buyout program for its own pensions is the precedent for Chicago, which should be a warning: Look out for similar exaggerated claims and shoddy analysis.
Full interview and summary linked here.
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“Intererestingly”, Mr. Callahan’s resto in Evanston is closing, and very suddenly; the socialist Evanston government is on the “let’s do a livable wage!” spree for restaurants: https://evanstonroundtable.com/2023/10/03/local-restaurant-thomas-dutch-closing-after-just-6-months/ Local restaurant Thomas & Dutch closing after just 6 months by Duncan Agnew – October 3rd, 2023 “With little warning or fanfare, Callahan and Doherty announced their intention to close their doors for good less than six months after the rebrand. Customers with reservations beyond this coming Sunday started receiving cancellation calls on Monday, Oct. 2… A spokesperson for Farmheads Hospitality Group did not immediately respond to questions from the RoundTable on Tuesday… Read more »
This is just the first step in unionizing restaurant workers. You think the server averaging $30 an hour with tips working 20 hours a week wants to work for $20 an hour and no tips. This will cause a big reset in the Chicago restaurant scene. If you’re only skill is being a server and your pay just got cut you’re leaving Chicago for the burbs or another state. Now that they’ve gotten rid of the ones that would vote against unionization they’ll make their push restaurant group by restaurant group at unionizing. Note to any restaurant owners – don’t… Read more »
Hmm, $40 per hour tending bar? Old Joe needs to get a retirement gig at Callahans.