Tipped workers won't get a raise as Mass. voters reject Question 5

Massachusetts voters decided the math didn't work out on raising the minimum wage for tipped workers.

Ballot Question 5 would have gradually increased the tipped worker minimum wage from the current $6.75 an hour to $15, matching the minimum for all other wage earners in the state. The Associated Press called the race after midnight on Wednesday.

As a result of bumping up the guaranteed minimum wage incrementally over the next five years, the measure also would have allowed restaurants and other businesses to pool tips among all non-management workers on a shift.

Proponents argued the question would have given tipped workers a more secure source of income while still allowing for tips given by patrons as a true gratuity rather than part of their wages. The question was driven by One Fair Wage, a national advocacy group that's organized efforts to raise tipped minimum wages in other states.

Opponents, meanwhile, said the increase wasn't needed because restaurants by law must guarantee a worker make as least $15 an hour if they aren't earning enough tips. They also said the measure would lead to higher costs to consumers. The Massachusetts Restaurant Association and other business groups lined up against the question.

Both sides of the initiative said workers were in their corner, each citing their own polling and anecdotes as proof.