Chairman Scott Statement on Department of Labor’s Harmful Tip Rule
“Now, dishonest employers will be able to ‘save’ money by exploiting tipped workers and abandoning their responsibility to pay the full minimum wage.”
WASHINGTON – Chairman Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement after the Department of Labor (DOL) finalized a tip rule that would repeal the 80/20 rule, which prohibits employers from paying subminimum wages to tipped workers who spend more than 20 percent of their time performing tasks where they cannot earn tips.
“Today’s final tip rule from the Department of Labor (DOL) strips tipped workers of a critical protection against wage theft at a time when they need it most. For more than three decades, the 80/20 rule prevented employers from paying subminimum wages to tipped workers, while assigning them work that does not provide them with ample opportunity to earn tips.
“Now, dishonest employers will be able to ‘save’ money by exploiting tipped workers and abandoning their responsibility to pay the full minimum wage. In fact, the Economic Policy Institute estimates that the rule could cost workers more than $700 million each year.
“Worse still, DOL failed to disclose how the rule will impact workers, even after a government watchdog faulted the Department for improperly withholding similar data for an earlier proposed rule.
“This last-minute rule is an insult to tipped workers who were already earning lower wages before the pandemic and are now struggling even more to make ends meet. During this economic downturn, workers need a Labor Department committed to protecting them. I look forward to working with the next administration to reverse this rule and supporting efforts to ensure tipped workers receive at least the full minimum wage.”
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