ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Concerned restaurant owners met in Rochester Monday to discuss the recent proposal by Gov. Andrew Cuomo to eliminate a reduced minimum wage for service workers, also known as "tip credits," in New York State.
The Rochester Chapter of the New York Restaurant Association says the change would increase the wages of restaurant servers, who they say are already the highest paid employees in the restaurant industry.
"That means that they may have to cut jobs because they can't afford to pay everyone, which means our food prices will increase for sure, our staff in the back might get cut, because we can't afford to increase both wages. It's just this ripple effect which we might not have even thought about,” said Courtney Wyckoff, a restaurant server and bartender.
They also say it would cause both independent and chain restaurants to close, reduce hours or turn to technology to reduce costs.
"It has a significant impact and we think it's mostly going to be a negative for jobs, for the employees themselves because if they get that minimum wage, I think tips will go down. We'll have to raise prices to a point where it will be expensive to go out. We think sales may drop also,” said John Urlab, the owner of Rohrbach Brewing Company.
But in a statement released last month, the Governor's Office says the proposal would not eliminate tipping, but only what they call the "subminimum wage.” The Governor's Office says they hope to eliminate the hardships that come with the subminimum wage outside of just the restaurant industry, like car wash workers, bartenders, dog groomers, tow truck drivers, wedding planners and tour guides.
Over the next several months, the state labor commissioner plans to hold hearings for hospitality industry workers in New York, Long Island, Syracuse, Buffalo, Watertown and Albany. There is currently no hearing scheduled for Rochester. Anyone wishing to testify at one of these meetings can register at this website.
The Governor’s Office did not immediately return a request for comment on the concerns of Rochester's New York State Restaurant Association Chapter.
The schedule for the New York State Department of Labor hearings is listed below:
Monday, March 12, 2018 at 10 a.m.
SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry
The Gateway Center, Syracuse
Wednesday, March 21, 2018 at 10 a.m.
Common Council Chamber
City Hall, Buffalo
Friday, April 20, 2018 at 10 a.m.
Roosevelt Little Theatre
SUNY Farmingdale
Wednesday, April 25, 2018 at 10 a.m.
Dulles State Office Building
317 Washington Street, Watertown
Friday, May 18, 2018 at 10 a.m.
Legislative Office Building, Albany
Week of June 18
New York City, Location TBD
Note: This hearing is for non-hospitality industries only.
Week of June 25
New York City, Location TBD
Note: This hearing is for hospitality industries only.