2017
In December of 2017, the Department of Labor (DOL) announced a proposal to remove tip protection. The proposal would allow tip pooling with the back-of-house employees and ownership as long as employees are compensated at least the minimum wage.
2018
After fierce opposition from the restaurant workforce, the proposal was scuttled in the spring of 2018. Later that year, Congress passed legislation that would allow tip pooling with the back of the house, but not ownership.
In 2018, ROC members placed a banner on top of the DOL’s office, urging the department to kill the proposal.
2020
The DOL resurrects the tipped work regulations issue. This time they propose allowing restaurants to pay staff the tipped minimum wage for side work, instead of the full minimum wage.
2021
With new leadership at the DOL, the agency releases a finalized proposal to restore tipped occupation protections. Under the proposed rule, employers must pay tipped workers the full minimum wage for side work when they perform side work continuously for more than 30 minutes or spend more than 20% of their work shift performing side work duties.
