One Fair Wage: Ending Subminimum Pay in America

by Saru Jayaraman

The federal tipped minimum wage since 1991 (yes, that is thirty years) has been $2.13. Prior to COVID, six million people that we are aware of worked off this system, meaning when the pandemic hit, tons of them lost their jobs and the varied security that came with them. In Jayaraman’s newest book, she “shines a light on these workers, illustrating how the people left out of the fight for a fair minimum wage are society’s most marginalized: people of color, many of them immigrants; women, who form the majority of tipped workers; disabled workers; incarcerated workers; and youth workers.” Jayaraman is the director of the Food Labor Research Center at U-C Berkeley.

Genres: Nonfiction, Social Justice, Business, Economics, History, Politics, Labor

256 pages, Hardcover

Published November 2, 2021

About the author

Saru Jayaraman is Director of the Food Labor Research Center at the University of California, Berkeley, President of One Fair Wage, cofounder of the Restaurant Opportunities Centers United (ROC United), and author of Behind the Kitchen Door and Forked: A New Standard for American Dining.

Reviews

[Richard Propes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Saru Jayaraman is the author of the acclaimed "Behind the Kitchen Door" and a longtime activist for the rights of food and restaurant workers. With "One Fair Wage: Ending Subminimum Pay in America." Jayaraman pointedly explores how the subminimum wage and tipping system exploits society's most vulnerable. This is a timely discussion given the current global pandemic's devastating impact on these workers - an estimated six million people who prior to the COVID-19 pandemic earned their living as a tipped worker in the service industry where they served us in restaurants and cafes, delivered food to our homes, provided our transportation, and often did our nails. They often did these things for little more than the $2.13 minimum tipping wage that has been in place in the U.S. since 1991 and they were, in hundreds of thousands of cases, the first to be discarded when the pandemic shuttered many of these businesses for months or longer.

If you're hoping for a light and breezy book that entertains along the way, Jayaraman's "One Fair Wage" may not be the one for you. Jayaraman means business and wastes very little time in diving in and staying in the meat of her material here.

"One Fair Wage" is a relatively short read at less than 200 pages. Yet, it's a substantial read where nary a single word is wasted.

Jayaraman explores the history of the subminimum wage and tipping system and then spends a good majority of "One Fair Wage" sharing vivid, powerful, and occasionally heartbreaking stories while tying these stories into cultural, economic, political, and historical realities. Jayaraman is unflinchingly honest, though it should be noted that "One Fair Wage" is an accessible read that clearly and concisely lays bare the inadequacies of the nation's social safety net and minimum wage standards.

With "One Fair Wage," Jayaraman shines a light on workers who are often left out of the fight for a fair minimum wage - people of color, many of them immigrants; women, who form the majority of tipped workers; disabled workers; incarcerated workers; and youth workers.

I will admit that I wish more attention had been addressed to disabled workers, in particular, who often toil away in sheltered workshops where their efforts are rewarded with a cents on the dollar compensation that would be laughable if it wasn't so exploitative.

Jayaraman early on ties in the current system to its early slavery roots and, indeed, economic slavery is very alive and well in the United States.

"One Fair Wage" is, at least in my estimation, a primer for this important discussion. I can't help but feel like this is the foundation upon which Jayaraman builds her activism and fight for restaurant and food worker rights. "One Fair Wage" is an invitation to join the fight and offers a clear explanation why doing so is so vital for the individuals impacted and the economic system that ultimately demands more.

"One Fair Wage" will leave you feeling better informed and educated along with feeling inspired to do what you can to make a difference for society's most vulnerable.

[Carl Leibniz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Were it not for this book, I would not have known that the concept of "subminimum wage" even existed. It is so mind-numbing that a direct legacy of slavery exists to this day. This book shed light on many different industries and how people working in those industries, trying to make a living, are discriminated against, not paid fairly and often are not treated like human beings. Emergence of COVID-19, especially has hit these tipped workers the hardest because many of these employees had to risk their lives to earn a tip from the customers. The author also reports the issues present in the gig economy, prejudice towards the disabled and the youth, and how incarcerated people are providing near free labor. I thank the author for bringing awareness to this matter and we should all join forces to end subminimum wage for good.

[Herbert Meisner · Rating 5 out of 5]

radical and necessary views on ending the tipped minimum wage. Lets do it!

[Jonathan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Saru Jayaraman's "One Fair Wages" uses a collection of individual stories, survey data, and some history and statistics to illuminate the fundamental injustice of subminimum wages. The federal tipped minimum wage remains only $2.13, putting workers at risk of abusive from unscrupulous bosses or mercurial, demanding, or harassing customers. Jayaraman focuses on the experiences of servers, bussers, delivery workers and drivers, nail salon workers, and others who rely on tips, and those for whom the subminimum wage is the whole wage (a phenomenon that can exist for prison labor, teen workers, and workers with disabilities). The existence of these subminimum wages, as she explains, is rooted in systemic racism and sexism, as workers with subminimum wages are disproportionately POC or female. They are also disproportionately immigrant workers as well. It's past time to fix this injustice at the local, state, and (hopefully) federal level and build on the momentum of the places that already have.

[Blake Suedekum · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some good information and elements of awareness in this book, but it’s not worth $20-$25. 190 pages that take a few hours to read and it can be repetitive. If interested in reading it, this is a good one to check out from the library and skim over the weekend. You can get the gist of the full book by reading 25-30 pages from anywhere within it. Important topic, but I was hoping for more in regards to a livable wage needed for all Americans and society’s role needed in getting us there.

[John Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fast reading book that highlights both how many Americans are paid a subminimum wage and individual stories that demonstrate the impact of this low wage on people. Wages of these workers were so low that many did not qualify for unemployment compensation during the pandemic because their wages were lower than state minimums to provide unemployment compensation, even though they and their employers paid the taxes for such benefits.

Jayaraman points that much is being done in some states to eliminate this injustice. Seven states – Alaska, California, Oregon, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, and Washington have all passed a full minimum wage with tips provided in addition to the minimum. She spoke about work from the Biden Administration that was being passed until senate rules held back the progress.

It was interesting to read about the history of tipping in this country. Used in the mid-1850’s by wealthy Americans who were matching their European upper-class members. Mostly male servers, they fought back with strikes across America. The results were mixed but their power decreased when enslaved people were emancipated and started to be hired as servers and otherwise in the hospitality industry. Most lacked the power to push back but the author points out that Blacks who were Pullman Company porters organized a union and struck, winning rights others didn’t have. By 1880, 43% of all workers in hotels and restaurants were African Americans. Jayaraman points out that racism slipped into the federal laws when the Labor Standards Act passed, cutting out the jobs where mostly African Americans filled: domestic workers, farm hands, and tipped employees.

What was perhaps the most interesting and shocking portion of the book is covering subminimum wage of prison workers. She pointed out that 6% of prisoners work for state-owned businesses and earn between 33 cents and $1.41 an hour. More surprising is how some big companies like Victoria’s Secret and Whole Foods make profit from the incarcerated.

The stories were interesting especially since each was different, with some people fighting for better wages.

[Suzanne Ondrus · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had no idea how much subminimum wages are out there. I heard Jayaraman first speak and then read her book. She is a great speaker! The book is also succinct with ample examples from real life. There are a lot of made ways to hire legal slaves. For example, paying teens, the disabled, and the incarcerated from pennies to below min. wage. Arguments are made for this that teens don't need the money, that the incarcerated are learning skills... But the fact is everyone deserves a fair wage. This book has opened up my eyes to sectors such as Uber and Lyft drivers as well as nails and restaurants. Simply put the employers of tipped employees deduct their tips from their wages; they are paid $2.13 an hour! In New Jersey teens protested in 2018 and actually got signed legislation passed for the whole state whereby teens were paid the state mandated min. wage. The National Employment Law Project found 40% of teens who work as low-income workers contribute at least 20% of their household income and more than 80% of these low income teens are young women of color (170).
Interestingly in 1850 waiters (white men) were paid full wages and no tips were given. Around this time there was disdain for tipping because it was seen as a vestige of the feudal system in Europe. Around 1850 waiters went on strike for better wages and what resulted in many places was hiring of women instead, and for lower wages. Then what followed was emancipated slaves went into service but were often only working for tips. She said the New Deal codified racism, excluding tipped women of color from minimum wage. The book also lists www.highroadrestaurants to go to in order to check if your restaurant is paying a min. wage.
Smear campaigns are touched upon, such as proposition 22 where many where duped into thinking that this was good for them and voted for it. Fallacious pamphlets circulated with phoney campaign names that sounded like they were pro-workers and minorities.

[Rachelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

One Fair Wage... could not put this book down! Excellent explanations of various service industries paid by an antiquated subminimum wage plus tips system, the high cost of living faced by individuals struggling for basic necessities and a glimpse into the prison system where prisoners work for 30 cents per hour. Loopholes in company shared tips for servers and freelancers like Uber drivers are exposed. Must read!

[Shea · Rating 3 out of 5]

this book sets the tone for an important conversation about the millions of americans left behind by our conversations about the minimum wage. i just found it to be a bit messy and repetitive in some sections, particularly the first two or three chapters, and was disappointed by how short the section on disabled workers was

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty hard to argue against this author that people deserve to be paid $2.13 an hour. I did not realize how closely subminimum wage was tied to jim crow and segregation. I especially liked the stories of individual people from the many categories of subminimum wage and their experiences.

[Alex · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book reflects many of my own experiences as a tipped worker. Sub-minimum wage needs to end in this country and not just for tipped workers! Everyone should be able to afford to feed, house and provide for themselves.

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This should be required reading for everyone in America. I learned so many things I did not know about employment and wages and the continuing legacy of slavery

[Ryan O'Malley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Concise and well organized history and call to action around the the groups exploited by the exceptions to the minimum wage law.

[Iniyan Ramasamy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amazing!! Must read

[MARC L'ESPERANCE · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book. The subminimum pay in the USA is such an injustice. Effecting a significant percentage of the labor force, and surprise, surprise, the workers are predominately immigrants, women, and people of color. Even the majority of the workers in the gig economy are subject to subminimum pay. This is a complete injustice. That these wage conditions still exist, where have all the years gone since the 1970s. The triumph of Neoliberalism has seen us enter a dark period of history, hopefully we awaken and reverse course. A government that works for the people and not for the rich and powerful.