Legal Battle Sparks Group’s Plan to Drop Minimum Wage Ballot Proposal

Facing a potential defeat in a lawsuit to increase Arizona’s minimum wage to $18 an hour, the Raise the Wage AZ campaign is seeking to withdraw their measure from the November ballot.

The campaign announced Thursday morning their intention to pull the more than 350,000 voter signatures gathered for the initiative. Instead, they aim to focus efforts on raising the minimum wage through the state legislature in 2025.

Saru Jayaraman, president of One Fair Wage, the national group behind Raise the Wage AZ, expressed doubts about the signatures’ ability to withstand a legal challenge from Arizona restaurants.

“We expect that after litigation and challenges from the Arizona Restaurant Association, we likely won’t have enough valid signatures,” Jayaraman stated. “Our resources are better directed toward fighting the restaurant association’s measure and building a grassroots effort for city-level initiatives and a statewide bill.”

However, withdrawing the measure at this stage is not straightforward. According to Arizona Secretary of State’s Office spokesman Aaron Thacker, the campaign cannot simply retract the signatures. It would require a court order before any action can be taken.

“For us, it’s just rumor and speculation until we get a court order,” Thacker clarified.

Raise the Wage AZ had been collecting signatures since November 2022, filing 354,278 signatures with the Secretary of State’s Office in July, exceeding the 255,949 required to qualify for the ballot.

But the Arizona Restaurant Association contested the validity of the signatures, claiming errors and insufficient numbers to qualify for the ballot.

Arizona law allows opponents to challenge signatures in court based on various criteria, which can lead to disqualification. Campaigns often gather more signatures than needed, but Raise the Wage didn’t gather enough to offset anticipated disqualifications.

If approved, the measure would have increased the state’s minimum wage from $14.35 to $18 per hour, with annual adjustments for inflation. It also aimed to reduce the amount of tips restaurants could credit towards wages, eventually requiring employers to pay workers the full state minimum wage regardless of tips.

The Arizona Restaurant Association supports a rival measure known as the “Tipped Workers Protection Act,” which allows employers to pay tipped workers 25% less than the minimum wage if their tips ensure they earn at least $2 more per hour than the minimum wage.

Earlier this week, a judge dismissed Raise the Wage’s challenge to this measure, affirming that it would not mislead voters.

The Arizona Restaurant Association celebrated the campaign’s setback. “The One Fair Wage initiative has always been a front for union bosses and out-of-state activists,” said Steve Chucri, the association’s president and CEO.

The restaurant trade group is encouraging voters to support Prop 138 in November, terming it the only way to protect tipped workers and small businesses from a California-style pay system.

Meanwhile, One Fair Wage plans to collaborate with Democratic Rep. Mariana Sandoval to introduce legislation mirroring their ballot measure’s intent. They will also work with UNIDOS to mobilize voter support for candidates endorsing Sandoval’s bill and to collect signatures for city and county-level initiatives next spring.