Last month, former President Donald Trump made a shiny promise to voters in Las Vegas, Nevada, home of one of the nation’s most prominent concentrations of service industry workers. He said he would eliminate taxes on tips. “For those hotel workers and people that get tips, you’re going to be very happy, because when I get to office, we are going to not charge taxes on tips,” Trump said.
“We’re going to do that right away first thing in office because it’s been a point of contention for years and years and years, and you do a great job of service.” As the Republican National Convention takes place in Milwaukee, Wisconsin , this week, Trump’s vow to eliminate taxes on tips has been a prominent part of the GOP’s pitch to voters. It’s included in the official 2024 RNC policy platform , bartenders and other staff have been spotted wearing “No Tax on Tips” shirts at RNC events, and speakers like Rep.
Steve Scalise (R-La.) have endorsed the proposal on the RNC stage. Proposed legislation has already been brought to Congress by Sen.
Ted Cruz (R-Texas). It’s an attractive campaign promise, but many service industry workers and advocates feel that the elimination of taxes on tipped wages would amount to an insufficient, short-term gain for employees who have long been calling for widespread reform to the service industry’s wage model. That’s if it even becomes a reality.
They’ve been burned by the pledges of ambitious politicians before, they haven’.
