Today, the DC City Council will vote on whether to pause the District’s July 1 wage hike for tipped restaurant workers as part of Initiative 82, the city’s tip credit elimination law.
The vote will be followed by a public hearing tomorrow, Wednesday June 4th on Mayor Bowser’s proposal to repeal Initiative 82 as part of her FY2026 budget.
Why it matters: DC’s tipped workers have been advocating for a repeal of the law since its passage in 2022, saying it has hurt their earnings and caused a full industry decline–and this week’s hearing and vote show DC leadership is listening. But, advocates like DC’s Budget Director are pushing back, saying the industry “remains healthy.” A new EPI analysis, which has been sent to the City Council ahead of this week’s vote and hearings, shows why that’s not the case.
Here’s some of the topline facts:
- Washington, DC has lost over $11.8 million in full-service restaurant workers’ earnings since the implementation of Initiative 82.
- The evidence documenting the consequences is overwhelming: the best available government data shows a 5 percent employment loss for the industry, including thousands of jobs lost while restaurant closures are at the highest rate in any year since the pandemic. Survey data also shows that the job loss figure could even climb up to 4,000.
- The regional slowdown is unique to the District: The District’s full-service restaurant employment growth rate dropped nearly 19 percentage points under Initiative 82 from the previous year, more than doubling the losses for the larger Washington metro area’s full-service restaurant employment.
- In January tipped workers testified in a six-hour hearing before the DC City Council condemning the law, with many saying their hours and earnings had been slashed, and tipping percentages have plummeted.
- A recent snapshot of local tipped workers’ experiences under Initiative 82 found 79% have earned less in tips this year than they did last year. Many attributed the lower tips to hours reductions, layoffs, reduced customer traffic, and higher menu prices scaring off customers.