AZ Restaurants Launch Legal Battle to Block $18 Minimum Wage Vote in November

The Arizona Restaurant Association is pursuing legal action to halt a ballot initiative that seeks to elevate the state’s minimum wage to $18 an hour. The association alleges that the group behind the initiative, Raise the Wage AZ, hasn’t collected enough valid signatures to make it to the November ballot.

Raise the Wage AZ has been advocating for the “One Fair Wage Act” since November 2022. This measure aims to increase the state minimum wage from $14.35 to $18 per hour and would subsequently adjust annually for inflation.

This initiative also proposes to incrementally raise the wages of tipped employees, eventually abolishing the lower hourly rate currently paid to workers who receive tips. Arizona law allows employers to pay tipped workers less per hour if their total earnings, including tips, meet the standard minimum wage.

The ballot measure requires 255,949 validated signatures to proceed. Raise the Wage AZ submitted 354,278 signatures earlier this month, according to the Secretary of State’s Office. County recorders are now in the process of validating these signatures to determine the measure’s eligibility for the ballot.

A competing measure, sent to the ballot by the Arizona Legislature and backed by the Arizona Restaurant Association, aims to allow employers to pay tipped workers 25% less than the minimum wage. Known as the “Tipped Workers Protection Act,” it passed in the Senate with a vote of 16-12, solely supported by Republicans.

The measure had earlier cleared the House of Representatives in April with a vote of 35-24. Under this proposal, employers can pay tipped workers 25% less than the state minimum wage as long as their tips bring their earnings to at least $2 per hour more than the minimum wage.

Opponents of the restaurant-backed measure are challenging its title in court, arguing it is misleading and does nothing to protect tipped workers, thus rendering it unconstitutional.

However, Raise the Wage AZ now faces its own legal challenge from the Arizona Restaurant Association. The association claims that Raise the Wage AZ’s petition has 28,000 fewer signatures than reported and includes signatures from non-Arizona voters and improperly registered petition circulators.

Steve Chucri, President and CEO of the Arizona Restaurant Association, expressed confidence in their analysis. “These petitions are rife with errors — unregistered voters, improperly notarized petitions and much more,” Chucri stated.

Despite this, Raise the Wage AZ remains optimistic. Jim Barton, an attorney for the group, said they anticipated this legal challenge and believe they will still have enough valid signatures to qualify for the ballot.

Barton noted discrepancies in the Restaurant Association’s estimates and questioned the data sets used in their analysis. He expects the court to make a decision by mid-August, as the deadline for printing ballots is August 22.

The two competing ballot initiatives are part of a wider national movement to raise the minimum wage, which faces strong opposition from business groups. Critics of Raise the Wage AZ have referenced Washington, D.C., where a similar minimum wage hike was met with resistance and led to restaurant surcharges despite the measure not yet being in effect.

In Arizona, a group named “Save Our Tips” registered as a political action committee before a House Commerce Committee hearing on the ARA-backed “Tipped Workers Protection Act.” Allegedly an extension of the Restaurant Association, the group did not disclose its affiliations during the committee hearing, raising questions about transparency.