St. Paul Minimum Wage Debate Heats Up Over Tip Credits

ST. PAUL, Minn. (WCCO) – As St. Paul looks to up the minimum wage to $15 an hour, city leaders are trying to figure out what to do with people who make tips.

One option is to raise the wages of every worker to $15 an hour. As such, people who make tips would make 15 bucks an hour plus their tips.

The other option is a tip credit.

These would protect workers who rely on tips from having a bad day by requiring employers to make up the difference up to $15 an hour.

Groups of workers backing both options plan to demonstrated Monday.

One group, Restaurant Workers of America, is pushing for a tip credit.

They say that the credit allows tipped workers to have greater control of their income.

However, some tipped workers say they’d rather have $15 an hour, arguing that it’s more reliable.

The St. Paul City Council hopes to have a decision on what to do by the end of the year.