Call Your Illinois legislators Now. Ask your state representative and state senator to take action. 

In Illinois, we are gathering support for 2023 legislation. This bill will gradually eliminate the subminimum wage for tipped workers over three distinct periods. 

Since the pandemic, restaurant workers have been leaving the industry in droves. Our research reveals that 53 percent of restaurant workers surveyed are considering leaving the industry, 70 percent of whom are citing low wages and tips as their primary reason for leaving, and 78 percent of workers state that the only reason they would stay in the industry is if they received a livable wage with tips on top. 

This proposed legislation will help change this. 

Meanwhile, the National Restaurant Association, the leading group lobbying against fair wage legislation and minimum wage increases, uses money paid by restaurant workers for barebones but required food safety courses into a lobbying fund against workers seeking higher wages and better working conditions. Check out the New York Times article that reported this.