Ballot 5 Is A NO Go

By Maeve Fitzgerald

BOSTON, MA– Ballot question number 5 in regard to servers receiving minimum wage with pooled tips has not passed, surmounting to 64.4% of votes being for “no”.

Servers and bartenders have found solitude and contentment within the results of the ballot, claiming that it has even saved the future of their education and housing situations.

Beantown Pub owners and employees, who previously shared their strong disdain for the proposed bill being passed, are now basking in the security that has been reinstated to their hard earned tip money.

Brigid McCue, a 26-year-old waitress at the Beantown Pub and full-time student at UMass Boston, shared how grateful she was to see that the bill hadn’t passed.

“I’m so thankful that question five didn’t pass. I was worried about having to find a new job because of how it would change the pay system. As a service industry worker, I just want to take home the tips I earned. Boston is expensive as is, so I didn’t see any reason to mess with employee’s pay,” said McCue.

McCue is not the only restaurant industry worker who is relieved to hear the outcome of the ballot though. Megan King, the bartender manager at Beantown Pub, has worked as a bartender for nearly a decade now.

For King, it’s not just about getting to keep all of her earned tips.

“For me, when question 5 didn’t pass, I felt like I could breathe again. For a minute there, my future was unclear. I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to afford my life or continue my education without the tips that I currently am making and am able to keep. But now, things are staying the same and I’m happy for our fellow bar staff, as well as small business owners that this won’t be our new reality,” said King.

With so much anxiety leading up to the outcome of the election, many service workers are feeling relief heavily. On the other hand, the strongest advocate, One Fair Wage, has not given up just yet.

When asked about the next steps after losing the ballot, One Fair Wage has vowed to continue on its mission of instating minimum wage for all tipped employees through “legislative action and/or future ballot measures,” according to the Boston Herald.