“If we don’t act, these changes will have a catastrophic impact. Increased payroll costs will be passed on to customers. As prices rise, fewer people will choose to eat out; pushing many restaurants to cut hours, reduce staffing, or even shut down entirely,” Roth said in a Thursday speech before the House. “Think about that: if we don’t act, family restaurants and businesses that have been around for generations will cease to exist. Our main streets will transform into shells of what they once were. We have received almost 40,000 letters in support of maintaining the tip wage. It’s clear this is their livelihood and should be their choice. I ask for your support to do the right thing and help our servers maintain their jobs.”

“House Republicans said we were going to fight for the working class and save our small businesses and tipped wage workers; now we’re delivering on that promise,” Roth said. “The livable wage in Grand Traverse County is around $30 an hour. The average tipped worker in Northern Michigan earns about $29 an hour with tips. If we force these staff to work at $15 an hour, life in our communities will become impossible to afford. They’ll have to sell their homes, take their kids out of school, and uproot their entire lives. But we still have time to fix this. The governor and Senate Majority Leader need to get on board so we can save these folks livelihoods before it’s too late.”