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To Our Valued Guests,
We typically like to keep our communications with you light and focused on fun events or specials, but we have a very serious issue to share that impacts the Arizona restaurant industry, tipped workers, and you, the consumer. You may have heard about Proposition 138, which is on the ballot this November. Prop. 138 is the Tipped Workers Protection Act, designed to protect tip income for full-service restaurant workers and keep restaurants affordable for consumers.
Before we go into the details, the point of our message here is to ask for your support, by voting YES on Prop 138. Below are some statements from our staff!
Missy, a Zipps employee for over 25 years says,
“As a tipped employee for over 30 years, I believe Prop 138 is an important measure for protecting workers' wages. Tipping is welcomed among staff and guests to ensure good customer service. Prop 138 additionally is important to keep small restaurants in business.”
Serena, a Zipps employee for over 13 years says,
"As a single mother, I have been able to purchase a home and raise my 4 children as a server for 13 years and counting. Voting no on Prop 138 could dramatically reduce my income and the ability to do so. It is imperative that the ability to provide as I have is not taken away from me or anyone else for that matter. There are many servers in this industry raising families. PLEASE vote YES ON PROP 138!”
Ellie, a Goldie's employee for over 11 years says,
"I have had the pleasure of working at Goldie’s for over 11 years. I have been treated like family by ownership and made lifelong relationships by working at the “neighborhood sports cafe”. As I am sure many customers have the same sentiment. It is imperative to my livelihood to encourage people to vote YES on Prop 138. It is crucial to places like Goldie's; it will help keep your favorite neighborhood spot thriving, pass on great prices, employ wonderful people, and give us a place where everyone knows each other. This Prop is so important for all of us! I humbly ask for you to support restaurant workers and the establishments that have worked so hard to give us a place we love to go to. Vote YES on Prop 138!"
What is Prop. 138?
Prop. 138 is a response to out-of-state groups attempting to change the tipping system in Arizona to a service-charge model. While they failed in their latest attempt, they have promised to come back until Arizona’s hospitality industry is completely changed. Their approach has failed in other markets, leading to increased labor costs, reduced pay for tipped employees, higher menu prices, service fees, layoffs, and closures. That is why Prop. 138 is so important, its passing protects the current system by giving the tip credit and the tipping system constitutional protection so that cities cannot eliminate them.
What Does Prop. 138 Do?
Prop. 138 protects the current tipping system in full-service restaurants and other traditional full-service industries. It protects/keeps the tip credit and changes it from $3 to 25% of the minimum wage, to adjust with future minimum wage increases. It also increases the guaranteed base wage for servers by $2 per hour; If Prop. 138 were in place today, the guaranteed base wage for servers would be $16.35 per hour instead of $14.35 per hour.
What is a “Tip Credit”?
A tip credit is an amount that restaurants can save on a tipped worker’s hourly wages. Currently, the tip credit allows employers to pay tipped employees $3 less than minimum wage per hour, as long as their tips make up the difference. If the tips do not, then employers must pay them the minimum wage (and if Prop 138 passes, that will be increased to $2 over the minimum wage as referenced in the section above). More importantly, the tip credit is key to ensuring that tips earned by workers are legally protected under the Fair Labor and Standards Act. Without the tip credit, we see a mandatory service fee model and shared tip pools.
Why Should You Care About the Tip Credit?
Prop. 138 protects the current system you already know, preserving the tip credit and raising the guaranteed wage for workers. The tip credit benefits Arizona's tipped workers, restaurants, and customers. This system blends the stability of a guaranteed base wage with the potential for significant earnings through tips for employees. This structure rewards exceptional service while saving customers from paying sales tax on the service they receive at restaurants and preventing mandatory service charges. In fact, most tipped workers support the current model and fear that their earnings would drop if the tip credit was eliminated (as has happened in other markets). For restaurants, it helps manage labor costs, keeps dining affordable, and avoids significant price increases or service charges as seen in those other markets. It is not about restaurant ownership being greedy; we have always aimed to keep prices reasonable. It is about supporting the service staff who thrive in providing you all with good service and earning tips. Prop 138 protects this system, ensuring good service is rewarded while also guaranteeing employees earn more than minimum wage even without tips. By voting Yes on Prop. 138, you are supporting a system that rewards service, supports tipped workers, and keeps restaurant prices affordable.
If you vote No on Prop 138, this could be the result:
- Raised menu prices at all restaurants
- Service charges
- Pooled tips that do not go directly to service workers
- Reduced hourly rates for service staff
- Consumer confusion resulting in less qualified workers
- A decline in the quality of service when eating out
This Sunday is daylight saving time change which will push football games to start later.
This Saturday, November 2, will be our last Saturday opening at 10 a.m. Starting Saturday, November 9 we will return to our usual Saturday opening time of 11 a.m.
Starting this Sunday, November 3, we will open at 10:30 a.m. every Sunday until the end of the NFL season.
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