Advocates renew push for Illinois to eliminate tip credit despite bill failing to move before House deadline

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND) — Tipped workers are demanding lawmakers pass a bill in the final weeks of session to eliminate the state's tip credit so they can receive a fair wage.

Some are calling for Illinois to create a new tax credit worth $1.50 per hour per employee for restaurant owners who do not take the tip credit before it is eliminated in 2027.

Advocates working with the national One Fair Wage organization told reporters in Springfield Tuesday that Black tipped workers are forced to rely on tips from customers instead of guaranteed wages from their employers. They argue raising the wage from $9 to $15 could help roughly 65,000 Black tipped workers across the state.

"As a former tipped worker myself, I faced evictions," said Nataki Rhodes, the national lead organizer with One Fair Wage. "I have faced these problems of hypertension and bad health. Raising my son in Chicago, I was very impacted by not making a livable wage."

Still, leaders from the Illinois Restaurant Association argue eliminating the tip credit will not lead to a raise for these workers.

"By law, every wait person or bartender that gets the tip credit, $9 per hour, needs to make at least $6 an hour in tips," said Illinois Restaurant Association President Sam Toia. "We know what people make in tips now because the super majority, almost 85% of the people, use debit cards or credit cards. The average wait person in the state of Illinois makes close to $29 per hour."

Toia noted that Illinois could lose $270 million in taxes per year if every restaurant took the $1.50 tax credit per hour per employee until the sub-minimum wage is phased out.

The Illinois One Fair Wage plan passed out of the House Executive Committee on a 8-4 vote on March 20. However, House Bill 2982 was kicked back to the House Rules Committee after representatives failed to move the bill on third reading by April 11. The legislation could be brought back to the floor if Rep. Lisa Hernandez (D-Cicero) receives a deadline extension or tosses the language into a shell bill. Although, statehouse insiders have told WAND News that the bill is dead for the spring session.

Advocates are determined the get the legislation across the finish line, even if it takes several more years.

"The Voting Rights Act did not come quickly. Things happen over a course of time," said Rev. Dr. Janette Wilson from the Rainbow PUSH Coalition. "It takes a lot more time than one would imagine because you're moving a body of people that have a number of issues that they face. It is a critical issue because it re-energizes the cycle of poverty that we're seeing."