There is a petition up to help stop Senate Bill SB 2106 which proposes to slash the hourly wage for tipped employees from the current minimum wage of $4.65/hour to just $2.13/hour – a $2.52/hour pay cut.
If this cut goes through a full-time server could potentially lose more than $5,000 a year in wages.
While it is not apparent who introduced SPB 7210 now SB 2106, it appears to have wide support from the Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association. Opponents of the bill have received support from Senator Jeremy Ring, who has voted no on the bill.
This bill has already gone to a regulations committee and the intent is to get it passed and effective by July 1st.
Time is of the essence and it appears we are going backwards. If you support a NO vote on these bills, please do your part by signing the petition and forwarding this information to your friend via email, facebook, Twitter, etc. Particularly if you or a tipped employee you know works or lives in Florida. Sign the petition.
UPDATE 2/20/12: There is an additional petition, directed to the Gov. of Florida that you can sign here. AND there is there is another petition going here. Tipped workers in states other than Florida should pay strict attention to this. If it passes it may become popular with other states and backed by corporations and the hospitality industries. Please share.
Related Information
February 18th, 2012 | 
Funny
this site just seems to be a little misinformed – you say Senator Ring supports this bill; however, if you look up the bill in the senate he is the only senator who did NOT vote yes.
Here is the link to the page where you can see the Senators and what they voted:
http://flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2012/2106/CommitteeVotes/2CqEg1VWYTQdPnURnGQCT0IiCHg=%7C11/Public/Committees/Commerce%20and%20Tourism/Meetings/2012-02-16%200830AM/S2106%20Vote%20Record.PDF
Ring voted “No” on the bill, showing his support, by being against it. I should have been more clear about that. I’ll fix the wording.