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Restaurants win relief as Colorado bill leaves wage hikes to local control
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Approved, Axios, State

Restaurants win relief as Colorado bill leaves wage hikes to local control

By John Frank | Axios Denver The nasty fight at the Colorado Capitol over how much to pay tipped restaurant workers ended in a standoff this week. The big picture: Gov. Jared Polis signed the Restaurant Relief Act into Colorado law on Tuesday, with backing from the Colorado Restaurant Association and other major industry organizations. Why it matters: The result is a victory for the opposition, which mounted an aggressive campaign against the legislation, though it gives cash-pinched restaurant owners another chance to make their case at the local level. Threat level: The state's restaurant industry faces a crisis, with as many as 200 closing statewide last year — a majority of which operated in Denver — partially prompting the legislative proposal...
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Colorado legislature passes bill punting to local governments on how much restaurant servers are paid
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Approved, State, The Colorado Sun

Colorado legislature passes bill punting to local governments on how much restaurant servers are paid

By Tamara Chuang | The Colorado Sun A contentious bill pitting many restaurant owners against workers over how much tipped employees should earn was approved by the Colorado legislature Tuesday, with the restaurant industry feeling like it had achieved a small victory.  While the industry sought to offset tipped workers’ paychecks with more of their gratuities, therefore reducing their base pay in some scenarios, the decision has been punted to local governments.  Under House Bill 1208, which now heads to Gov. Jared Polis, relief won’t come immediately — if ever. Especially not in Denver, where dozens of restaurant owners testified that high minimum wages exacerbated their struggles to survive and keep up with rising food, rent and insurance costs. Some members on Denver...
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Niwot residents urge Boulder County to pause minimum wage ordinance harming small businesses
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Approved, Left Hand Valley Courier, Local

Niwot residents urge Boulder County to pause minimum wage ordinance harming small businesses

By Peggy B. Graham | Left Hand Valley Courier During the Boulder County Commissioners' public comment session on April 3, several Niwot residents addressed the commissioners with significant concerns about the detrimental effects of the current minimum wage ordinance on Niwot's small businesses. Ordinance 2023-4, which took effect on January 1, 2024, established the minimum wage for unincorporated Boulder County at $16.57 per hour this year, $1.76 higher than the neighboring incorporated towns and cities, except Boulder, which is still lower than the county ordinance. The ordinance mandates annual increases, reaching $25 per hour by 2030, and then further adjusting in accordance with the Consumer Price Index. Notably, most larger municipalities within...
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House Bill 1208: Price controls for a minimum wage mistake
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Approved, completecolorado.com, State

House Bill 1208: Price controls for a minimum wage mistake

By Ari Armstrong, Complete Colorado What happens when the price of eggs soars? People buy fewer eggs and start looking for substitutes. What would happen if, say, government set a $10 minimum price on a dozen eggs, higher than the usual price in stores these days? People would buy fewer eggs, yet producers would want to sell all the eggs they could. Some eggs would sit around unpurchased. No one disputes the economics of price controls on eggs. (We can leave to another day discussion of legislative attempts to set de facto price limits on products.) But, somehow, when it comes to wages, we’re supposed to throw basic economics out the window and pretend that price controls don’t matter. Obviously no one thinks that price controls never matter. If government set a minimum price of a...
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Higher minimum wage in Boulder, Colorado puts strain on local restaurants
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Approved, CBS Colorado, Local

Higher minimum wage in Boulder, Colorado puts strain on local restaurants

By Sarah Horbacewicz | CBS Colorado In November, Boulder voters approved the increase of minimum wage in the city from $14.42 to $15.57 per hour, which went into effect on Jan. 1. As the new year begins, Peter Waters, the T/aco restaurant owner, is taking a close look at his budget. "We have about 50,000 labor hours a year, so $1.10 increase, you can do the math, is a quick $55,000 that we need to figure out how to adjust for in the coming year," Waters said. One of those adjustments will show up on menu prices which is T/aco's first raise since the COVID-10 pandemic. "In addition to price increases, we are going to have to start adjusting labor hours and asking more of our staff," Waters said. READ THE FULL STORY AT CBS COLORADO
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Map details where the minimum wage is — and isn’t — increasing in 2025
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Approved, kdvr.com, National

Map details where the minimum wage is — and isn’t — increasing in 2025

By Addy Bink | Fox 31 News, via The Hill While the federal minimum wage has been unchanged since 2009, more than 20 states are set to see an increase in 2025. After the new rates take effect, nearly a dozen states will have minimum hourly wages at or above $15 statewide. Another 21 states will see no increase. And in all but one, the minimum wage matches or falls below the federal rate of $7.25 an hour. READ THE FULL STORY AT FOX 31
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Colorado’s minimum wage is increasing again in 2025 by 2.7%, tipped wage also increasing
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Approved, State, The Pueblo Chieftain

Colorado’s minimum wage is increasing again in 2025 by 2.7%, tipped wage also increasing

By Justin Reutter | Pueblo Chieftain The Colorado minimum wage will increase by 39 cents in 2025, according to the Colorado Division of Labor Standards and Statistics. Colorado's minimum wage will increase from $14.42 to $14.81, which represents a 2.7% increase. Meanwhile, the tipped minimum wage will increase from $11.40 to $11.79, as the tipped minimum wage can be $3.02 less than the standard minimum, according to the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment. read the full story at the Pueblo Cheiftain
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Boulder weighing minimum wage bump to $16.58 in 2025, another $1 in 2026, 2027
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Approved, Boulder Reporting Lab, Local

Boulder weighing minimum wage bump to $16.58 in 2025, another $1 in 2026, 2027

By John Herrick | Boulder Reporting Lab The Boulder City Council is considering raising the city’s minimum wage to between $15.57 per hour and $16.58 per hour starting next year, with additional increases of over a dollar in each of the following two years. A final decision is expected later this year.  If approved, the wage hike would impact thousands of workers currently earning the state minimum wage of $14.42 per hour. Labor advocates want the city council to raise the minimum wage to $25 per hour by 2030, but councilmembers were noncommittal during a meeting on Thursday, Aug. 22. They said they were concerned about the impact on small businesses facing higher labor costs, even as they agreed the increase is necessary to help workers afford to live in Boulder. READ THE F...
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State’s minimum wage could increase by nearly 3% again in January
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Approved, State, The Colorado Sun

State’s minimum wage could increase by nearly 3% again in January

By Tamara Chuang | The Colorado Sun The minimum wage in Colorado and a few local governments is going up again Jan. 1.  The raising of the minimum wage has been an annual event for the state and the city of Denver for years and, starting this year, Edgewater and Boulder County joined in. That’s because all are tied to the change in the Consumer Price Index, also known as inflation. Denver’s rate will jump 52 cents next year to $18.81 an hour, up from the current $18.29. Colorado’s is tentatively increasing 39 cents to $14.81, from $14.42. The state’s official new wage will be announced around Labor Day, according to state labor department officials. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE COLORADO SUN
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