Misleading minimum wage surcharges could soon be a thing of the past. Working Washington has sent an official request to the State Department of Labor & Industries calling on the agency to establish rules that would effectively eliminate misleading surcharges which pose as taxes or claim to go towards wages.
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Despite what it says on these receipts, there is no such thing as the “Seattle Fair Wage Act” or a “WA Min Wage Fee.”
Paying the minimum wage is a basic cost of doing business, not an extra add-on to be counted separately. If there’s no line item for the rent and no napkin-laundering charge called out, then there’s no good reason to tack on an extra few percent and attribute it to the minimum wage — unless you’re trying to send a political message about opposition to raising the wage, that is.
For more than a year, we’ve collected examples of misleading minimum surcharges from across the state. We’ve asked businesses to eliminate these charges. We’ve published a list. We’ve gone to the press. And more.
We’ve had success turning back many of these charges — but others are still out there. (For example, the two pictured above.)
So now we’re taking the next step. We sent a letter to L&I asking them to use their authority under the law to clarify that:
- Service charges can never pose as taxes or government-mandated fees.
- Any surcharges that include the word “wage” or similar language are forbidden, because they will invariably be interpreted as intended to count towards employees’ wages, and that would be illegal under state law.
- Workers must be made whole for service charges which inappropriately were counted towards wage obligations, as this is effectively wage theft.
Taken together, these three rules would effectively eliminate misleading minimum wage surcharges. That’s why we’re asking you to add your name in support.
After you add your name, we’ll deliver your signatures to L&I — and we’ll let you know how they respond.
Thanks. Let’s do this!
Sage, Working Washington
P.S. You can read our complete letter to L&I here.
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