Paying $2.13 Plus Tips Doesn’t Cut It Anymore, Investors Say

Group overseeing $538 billion in assets urges higher pay
Letter sent to U.S. companies warns of risks to reputations

A worker wearing a protective mask sets up outdoor seating at a restaurant in the Hampden neighborhood in Baltimore, Maryland, U.S., on Friday, Nov. 20, 2020. Coronavirus infections continue to rise in the greater Washington region, with more than 5,000 new cases reported on Thursday, a daily record.Photographer: Al Drago/Bloomberg

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By Josh Eidelson

December 11, 2020 at 6:04 PM UTC

This article is for subscribers only.

Investors representing more than half a trillion dollars in assets are urging publicly traded companies to stop paying U.S. tipped workers less than the standard minimum wage.

“The public is paying attention to the treatment of essential workers,” the firms said in a letter, which warns that “companies put their brand reputation at risk by continuing to pay a subminimum wage that impoverishes workers from already vulnerable communities.”