"Illinois tipped workers make more than double Indiana's." When I saw that headline, I thought it was a story about what cheapskates Hoosier restaurant diners are. But, no, it goes somewhere else:
Illinois minimum wage is $4.95 for tipped employees -- $2.82 cents more than Indiana's.
Indiana is one of the 17 states following the federal minimum wage of $2.13 for tipped workers -- the lowest in the nation.
Indiana's minimum wage for other workers has been rising steadily. In 2008, it was raised to $6.55 from $5.85. By 2009, it had been raised to $7.25.
I don't think much of minimum wage laws in general, but as long as they're there it does seem pretty cold to keep them the lowest for the workers that probably struggle the hardest to make a decent living. But wait staffs are a microcosm of the pitfalls of the minimum wage. If restaurants paid people well enough that they could be less dependent on tips, it would put a big squeeze on an industry where the profit margins are already pretty small. And a lot of people would stop eating out when the meal prices inevitably rise to make up for the extra cost. It would be a double whammy, and a lot of restaurants would close, meaning a lot fewer jobs for the people we're supposedly helping.
So, don't be schmucks and offer all kinds of lame excuses for not tipping well. Your gratuities help feed the working class and keep government meddling to, er, a minimum. Such a deal.
