HARD TO SWALLOW

Last-Minute Trump Admin Law Will Let Restaurant Owners Pull Wait Staffers’ Tips, Says Report

The new rule will reportedly allow restaurant owners to pay backroom staff using tips given to front-of-house staff.

One of the final pieces of legislation rolled out by the Trump administration will reportedly allow restaurant bosses to save money by taking tips away from serving staff to help pay cooks and dishwashers in the back. According to Business Insider, the new rule was published Tuesday by the Department of Labor. It would reportedly allow restaurants to pay backroom staff using tips given to front-of-house staff—effectively taking that expense away from business owners and placing it on workers. Cheryl Stanton, administrator of the wage and hour division at the Department of Labor, claimed the rule could “reduce wage disparities among all workers who contribute to the customers’ experience.” The new rule won’t take effect until after Trump leave the White House, so it’s possible that President-elect Joe Biden could work to rescind it. Tipped staffers can earn as little as $2.13 an hour in wages from their employer.