Sexual harassment is defined as unwanted sexual propositions, gestures and language and is a problem in almost every industry. The restaurant industry is particularly susceptible to these types of problems. This industry employs a large number of people, many of which are paid at or below minimum wage. Tipped workers are often paid a fraction of minimum wage as tips are supposed to make up the rest of their salary. Although many state minimum wage laws dictate payment above these levels, Federal minimum wage for untipped workers is $7.25 while for tipped workers it is $2.13.
There has been a push at the Federal and state level to raise the wages of tipped restaurant workers either by paying them the same as untipped workers or raising the minimum wage altogether. A new study, put out by the Restaurant Opportunities Center United and called "The Glass Floor: Sexual Harassment in the Restaurant Industry", has provided further inspiration for these legislative changes. The study, done this year, involved almost 700 restaurant workers from 39 states and shows that sexual harassment in the restaurant industry is occurring at a shocking rate. Many of the workers were from states where there was a gap in the minimum wage between tipped and untipped workers.
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