NH House Opens New Assault on Minimum Wage

More than 20,000 New Hampshire workers would no longer be covered by the federal minimum wage law if a proposal under consideration by the New Hampshire House Labor Industrial and Rehabilitative Services Committee becomes law.

The committee is reviewing a proposal to greatly expand the number of Granite State workers categorized as tipped employees. The employer of an employee who receives more than $30 a month in tips is only required to pay $3.28 an hour in direct wages. New Hampshire law currently limits this minimum wage exception to employees of restaurants and lodging facilities.

Writing in The Lobby (paywalled), Jeff Feingold details the legislative maneuvering.

HB 494, as originally written, is innocuous enough. All it would do is add those who deal cards at games of chance to the definition of “tipped employee.” …

Then committee Chair Gary Daniels, R-Milford, asked “if the committee would like to [do] something more generic” rather than making exceptions one at a time. …

Think cab drivers, hotel workers, newspaper carriers, charter bus drivers, parking attendants, massage workers, hair dressers.

Such workers make so much money in tips, echoed another Republican, that “they don’t need our help.”

Rep. Tammy Simmons left no doubt that this is just one more item on the House’s anti-union, anti-worker agenda. “I think we should be abolishing the minimum wage and let the free market reign,” she said.

HB 494 has been retained for next session.