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geardaddy

(24,924 posts)
Thu Aug 7, 2014, 05:21 PM Aug 2014

Restaurant Charging 'Minimum Wage Fee' Due To Minnesota Wage Hike

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/restaurant-minimum-wage-fee

A restaurant in Stillwater, Minn. has started charging patrons a 35 cent "minimum wage fee" now that the state has raised the minimum wage, according to the Star Tribune.

The wage jumped from $7.25 to $8 an hour on Aug. 1, and Oasis Cafe owner Craig Beemer said he needs the fee to offset the wage increase.

Beemer told the Start Tribune that it will cost him an extra $10,000 per year to pay his six servers a higher wage.

Some customers were upset by the fee, and few started organizing a boycott of the restaurant on Facebook.

Colin Orcutt, the restaurant's manager, told the Star Tribune that he was "shocked" by the customer response to the fee.

"We're all appalled at the response for just protecting his employees. We're just doing what we have to do," he said.

Blue Plate Co., which owns multiple restaurants in Minnesota, told the Tribune that it raised prices in its restaurants due to the wage increase and higher costs due to Obamacare.

A restaurant in Florida started charging customers an Obamacare surcharge to help pay for costs associated with Affordable Care Act compliance in February.


Why didn't he just raise prices without calling it a "fee"

Looks like I'll be boycotting Blue Plate restaurants like The Lowry and The Longfellow
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trotsky

(49,533 posts)
1. Why didn't he just raise prices without calling it a "fee" ?
Thu Aug 7, 2014, 05:25 PM
Aug 2014

Because he's a passive-aggressive Republican shithead.

trotsky

(49,533 posts)
4. 3 Squares in Maple Grove is in that Blue Plate group too.
Thu Aug 7, 2014, 05:28 PM
Aug 2014

Pity, they had decent food and a good beer selection. Not another dime from me!

 

Thor_MN

(11,843 posts)
7. Minnesota Blue Plate owned...
Thu Aug 7, 2014, 06:11 PM
Aug 2014

Be sure to let them know why you won't be returning...

The Freehouse
The Lowry
Scusi
3 Squares Restaurant
Longfellow Grill
Edina Grill
Groveland Tap
Highland Grill

I don't ever get over to St. Paul and rarely go downtown Mpls, so the Edina Grill is the only one I've been to (20+ years ago) and the only one close enough to NOT go to..

The Velveteen Ocelot

(115,267 posts)
3. I've been a regular at the Highland Grill for years.
Thu Aug 7, 2014, 05:27 PM
Aug 2014

I'm tempted to boycott as well, but if I do I'll let them know why.

IllinoisBirdWatcher

(2,315 posts)
6. Perhaps he can also break out a "Profit Fee" as well...
Thu Aug 7, 2014, 05:32 PM
Aug 2014

to be honest with his customers. Something like this:

Food Cost = 30%

Labor Cost = 25%

Minimum Wage Cost = 2.5%

Gross Profit = 47.5%

 

Jenoch

(7,720 posts)
10. If the restaurant business were as lucrative
Thu Aug 7, 2014, 08:51 PM
Aug 2014

as you make it appear, then the majority of new restaurants would not fold in their first year.

frylock

(34,825 posts)
8. i would imagine a lot of establishments will be raising their prices..
Thu Aug 7, 2014, 06:27 PM
Aug 2014

however, they're probably not going to be dicks about it and make a grand proclamation like this asshole. I don't mind paying a little extra to ensure people receive a decent wage.

HubertHeaver

(2,520 posts)
9. Very disappointing. We spent an afternoon at the Oasis near Stillwater, Mn in late July.
Thu Aug 7, 2014, 07:24 PM
Aug 2014

It is in a former gas station along side the state highway. Easy access, decent food (it is a diner, don't expect gourmet) and friendly service. We sat at one of the outdoor tables while waiting for other family members to arrive. Actually, a rather nice place. The owner did seem to have an "edge" in his attitude--not really off-putting but present.

progree

(10,864 posts)
12. Cafe charges fee to offset wage increase, (& Blue Plate charges servers for tips on credit card)
Fri Aug 8, 2014, 12:39 AM
Aug 2014
Cafe charges fee to offset wage increase, PioneerPress, AP, 8/7/14

http://www.twincities.com/localnews/ci_26296884/cafe-charges-fee-offset-wage-increase?source=rss

Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton on Thursday criticized restaurants that are charging their customers fees to offset a recent state minimum wage increase, calling the practice "tacky." ... he didn't name a specific restaurant

...Oasis Cafe, a small roadside cafe in Stillwater, recently started charging customers a 35-cent fee to offset the 75-cent wage increase that took effect last week, the Star Tribune reported. Despite threats from customers and the online boycott movement, Orcutt said business at Oasis Cafe has increased so far this week.

...Blue Plate Co., a Twin Cities-based company that owns eight restaurants, has increased prices and has begun to charge its servers when a customer uses a credit card to tip them.


See post#7 for a list of Blue Plate restaurants.

progree

(10,864 posts)
13. Here's a picture of an Oasis Cafe receipt with the "Min Wage Fee"
Fri Aug 8, 2014, 12:42 AM
Aug 2014

Last edited Fri Aug 8, 2014, 01:24 AM - Edit history (1)

Gov. Dayton dives into minimum wage fee furor, MyFoxTwinCities.com, 8/7/14
http://www.myfoxtwincities.com/story/26227232/gov-dayton-dives-into-tacky-minimum-wage-fee-furor

A friend of an Oasis Café customer posted a photograph of the receipt to the restaurant's Facebook page to share her outrage at the eatery's decision to put employee wage increases on a bill as an extra charge to the customer. The so-called "server shaming" receipt includes a minimum wage fee of 35 cents just below the tax total on a $15 bill. At the base of the receipt, the fee is further clarified as "a charge to offset a state increase of minimum wage for tipped employees."

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