Emmer In Damage Control Mode: Meeting Waiters After Claiming They Made $100K In Tips

[ccharles000]

Minnesota state Rep. Tom Emmer, the presumptive Republican nominee for governor, appears to be going into damage control mode in the wake of his proposal to lower the minimum wage for waiters by crediting their tips towards the state's wage requirement. He now has a listening tour session coming up this Wednesday, at which he will meet with servers.

Emmer said earlier this week that he would support such an idea, which is common in most other states. Minnesota is one of seven states that do not permit employers to pay less than the standard minimum wage to tipped workers. Federal law permits tipped workers' wages to be as low as $2.13 per hour, absent state regulation to the contrary, with tips given to workers credited against the minimum wage of $7.25 an hour employers are required to pay.

Whatever the economic merits of the policy might be, what really got Emmer in trouble was this quote, the substance of which he attributed to a restaurateur who was hosting the event in question: "With the tips that they get to take home, there are some people earning over $100,000 a year. More than the very people providing the jobs and investing not only their life savings but their families' future." Emmer's claim that wait staff were making six-figure salaries did not play well in the media.

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/07/emmer-in-damage-control-mode-meeting-waiters-after-claiming-they-made-100k-in-tips.php

[WillParkinson]

1. Wow...

I want that job. I work as a waiter. I take home 25 - 30k a year and that's only because I get a decent wage besides.

[blogslut]

2. Waitron units making $100,000 a year?

Bwahahahahahahahahahaha! :rofl:

[Maine-ah]

5. rofl w/ you

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

[yowzayowzayowza]

7. WAITRON TARGETING SYSTEM – ACTIVATED.

http://waiterrant.blogspot.com/2004/12/waitroninator-waitress-fucked-up.html

New term on me!!!

[hatrack]

3. $100,000 a year? Give me a FUCKING BREAK.

I worked full-time as a waiter and damned if I can ever recall making more than $12,000 per year during the six years in question.

And yes, that was at 40 hrs/wk, or as close as we were ever allowed to approach that magic "full-time" total.

Tom Emmer - assclown.

[zipplewrath]

6. Not even close

I've know some waiters at fairly posh places that were pulling down roughly $50K for about 25 hours of work. Nice work if you can get it. But no benefits, and no real chance for any advancement. And your job can be gone fast if the place goes out of favor. There are some doormen making that kinda cash, but I'd be surprised if they found many waiters.

[AngryAmish]

4. I met one (and only one) waiter who made that sort of cash

He worked 7 days a week at a very expensive steakhouse that turns over the tables very frequently.

That is just crazy.

[DrToast]

8. Maybe at some of the best restaurants in the country

But probably not too many in Minnesota.

[kickysnana]

9. Republicans in MN don't tip. n/t