In the June 27, 2008 issue Carrie Leishman of the DE Restaurant Association wrote a long defense of his/her industry’s position on the current legislation in the State Senate raising the minimum wage for employees making tips. He/She carefully avoided informing the reader that the current minimum wave for this class of employee is $2.23 an hour and the proposed legislation would increase the cash wage in increments to $3.57 over four years - $2.51 in January 2009, $2.86 in January 2010, $3.32 in 2011 and the final total of $3.57 in 2012.

As a lobbyist for the restaurant industry I am certain he/she constantly fights against any raise in taxes. No one should be surprised by that effort we all know how much business hates paying taxes. That was what shocked me about his/her solution to workers being poor in Delaware. He/She thinks Delaware’s supplement to the Federal government’s anti-poverty program Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) providing tax-free cash to the poor is the best solution to this problem. He/She freely admits that the taxes needed to pay for this program “aren’t borne by employers” so I guess it is okay for the rest of us subsidize the salaries of these poor working people through our taxes.

Yes the EITC does raise the income of poor workers, but I suggest it more raises the profit and wealth of the members of the restaurant industry since they don’t have to pay their employees a living wage. If a Delaware restaurateur cannot pay his/her employees a living wage and turn a reasonable profit without an indirect tax subsidy maybe he/she should be in another business.

Bob Connelly
Milford