AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - The House is moving to roll back part of a voter-approved minimum wage law that supporters say is decreasing restaurant servers’ tips.
Voters in November approved an increase in Maine’s minimum wage from $7.50 per hour to $12 an hour by 2020. The wage would then increase after that according to inflation. Tipped employees’ wages would reach the minimum wage by 2024.
The House voted 110-31 Tuesday to approve a bill that allows employees to pay less than minimum wage to workers who make up the difference in tips. The Senate last week voted 23-12 on the bill.
The Maine People’s Alliance says the vote ignores the will of the voters and shows the restaurant lobby’s influence.
Republican Gov. Paul LePage supports reinstating the so-called “tip credit.”
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