How eliminating the tipped minimum wage could hurt Massachusetts restaurants — and its workers

?? Welcome to Trendlines. The secret word is "Charlie Hustle."

I'm Boston Globe financial columnist Larry Edelman , and today I look at why Question 5, the Massachusetts ballot question that seeks to boost pay for servers and bartenders, may well backfire.

Plus: Francis Ford Coppola's "Megalopolis" gets whacked at the box office.

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??? Bad Tip

Question 5 on the November ballot in Massachusetts would phase out the tipped minimum wage under which servers and bartenders are paid as little as $6.75 an hour, provided tips bring them to at least $15 an hour.

• The change would take place gradually, with wages reaching the standard minimum rate (even if it increases) in 2029.

• Tipping wouldn’t disappear. But the new law, once fully implemented, would permit employers to share that money with kitchen workers.

??? What they’re saying

One Fair Wage, the national advocacy group behind Question 5, argues tips should reward good service, not subsidize low pay at restaurants (and other businesses, including hair salons and nail shops, that would also be covered by the new law).

Restaurants say eliminating the tipped minimum wage would lead to smaller paychecks, fewer jobs, and higher prices.

?? The numbers

Median pay for the state’s 50,000 servers and 20,000 bartenders is less than $17 an hour with tips included, compared with $29 an hour for all occupations, according to US Labor Department data for 2023.

• Median pay for restaurant cooks, who aren’t tipped, is about $21 an hour, and for dishwashers it’s $17.

?? Pros

The primary argument for Question 5 is that it would lift tipped workers’ incomes by eliminating an unfair exception to the standard minimum wage.

• The proposal would also make workers’ pay more predictable and less dependent on the generosity of customers — or, in some cases, putting up with their bad behavior.

• Sharing tips would benefit low-paid kitchen staff.

?? Cons

• Many customers might tip less knowing that hourly wages are higher or if restaurants institute new fees to offset higher compensation costs.

• Some restaurants would likely respond by hiring fewer tipped workers.

• Service could suffer as workers are less incentivized to hustle for their tips.

?? Final thought

Question 5 has the right intentions, but the arguments against it are persuasive.

Ideally, there would be one minimum wage for everyone. And restaurant prices would reflect the owner’s true compensation costs so customers could tip on merit alone.

But pursuing a solution with so many possible downsides isn’t fair to the workers whose livelihoods are on the line.

?? Trending

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??? The Closer

Francis Ford Coppola put himself in the pantheon of great directors with "The Godfather" and "Apocalypse Now." Sadly, it looks like Coppola, 85, won't be going out on top, but with a box office flop for the record books.?

"Megalopolis," the story about an architect who dreams of building a new world, pulled in an estimated $4 million in North American theaters over its debut weekend. It cost $140 million to produce and market.

Many reviews have been brutal. "That the director spent 40 years trying to make this worthless, 138-minute hot mess shocks me to no end," the Globe's Odie Henderson wrote.?

But there have been raves, including from Manohla Dargis of The New York Times: "In the end, what matters is the movie, a brash, often beautiful, sometimes clotted, nakedly personal testament. It’s a little nuts, but our movies could use more craziness, more passion, feeling and nerve."

If you want to see it in theaters, don't delay. It may disappear soon.

?? Thanks for reading. I will be back on Thursday.