By Jerod MacDonald-Evoy | AZ Mirror
The Arizona Restaurant Association is suing to block a ballot initiative that would raise the state’s minimum wage to $18, claiming the union-backed group behind it failed to gather enough signatures to qualify for the November ballot.
The political committee Raise the Wage AZ has been gathering signatures for a ballot measure called the “One Fair Wage Act” since November 2022. The measure would raise the state minimum wage from $14.35 to $18 per hour, then increase it annually to address inflation.
It would also incrementally increase how much employers need to pay tipped employees, culminating in the elimination of a lower hourly rate businesses pay to workers who get tips from customers. Arizona law has long allowed restaurants, bars and other companies to pay tipped employees several dollars less per hour, provided the tips bring the worker’s pay to at least the standard minimum wage.
