EPI Research (Page 6 )

  • The Employment Effects of Eliminating the Tip Credit in Michigan

    May 2018

    In 2014, legislation to raise Michigan’s minimum wage received bipartisan support in the state legislature, and the state’s wage floor rose to $9.25 at the start of 2018. The base wage paid to tipped employees such as restaurant servers was increased from $3.38 to $3.52; these employees are still legally-guaranteed the same full minimum wage as all other employees. This fall, voters may consider at…
  • A Bad Tip: The Harmful Proposal to Eliminate New York’s Tip Credit: Research show harm of tipped wage hike, debunks link between tipping and sexual harassment

    February 2018

    Starting in 2015, the state of New York embarked on an unprecedented experiment in raising its minimum wage. Subsequent anecdotal and empirical evidence suggests these increases were tremendously-disruptive to New York’s service industry. Nevertheless, in December 2017 Governor Cuomo indicated his interest in further raising the base wage for tipped employees— eliminating the state’s tip credit and making New York one of just…

  • California Dreamin’ of Higher Wages: Evaluating the Golden State’s 30-Year Minimum Wage Experiment

    December 2017

    In recent decades, California has pursued minimum wage levels about the federal standard. By 2022, the state will have the first statewide minimum wage of $15.00 per hour. The Golden State’s minimum wage experience thus offers a unique opportunity for researchers to examine the longer-term economic effects of high minimum wages. In this new study, Dr. David Macpherson of Trinity University and Dr. William Even…
  • Should Florida Fight For $15?: An analysis of businesses' anticipated responses to proposed increases in the minimum wage

    October 2017

    Across the nation, lawmakers continue to grapple with the viability and impact of increasing the minimum wage to $15 an hour. Last year, the Florida state legislature took up the measure in Senate Bill 6 and House Bill 109, that would begin raising the $8.10 rate, beginning in January 2017. A ballot measure for 2018 or 2020 has also been discussed. What is the potential…
  • The Impact of an $11 Minimum Wage in St. Louis

    March 2017

    The Missouri Supreme Court recently ruled that the city of St. Louis acted within its authority to approve a 43 percent minimum wage increase to $11 an hour by 2018. This decision is currently being appealed, and Missouri state legislators are considering legislation that would nullify the municipal wage hike and set one minimum wage at the state level. Minimum wage proponents in the city…
  • The Impact of a $12 Minimum Wage in Maine

    September 2016

    Proponents of a higher minimum wage in Maine, led by the state AFL-CIO, have gathered enough signatures to put their proposed $12 minimum wage to a vote this November. Executive Director Matt Schlobohm defended the proposed 60 percent increase with a moral appeal: “Working people deserve fair wages…they deserve better than poverty for full-time work.” The accumulated evidence, including a new analysis specific to Maine, shows that a wage increase will not deliver…