MONEY

Polk supervisors: You can't always get what you want

Kevin Hardy
kmhardy@dmreg.com

The Polk County Board of Supervisors withstood a fresh barrage of complaints Tuesday over its proposed minimum wage hike, which would raise the local wage to $10.75 per hour by 2019.

Several supervisors told audience members that they had struck a compromise in creating the wage ordinance, which was debated over several months at special task force meetings. Supervisor Tom Hockensmith, who led the minimum wage task force, likened the process to his previous experience negotiating labor contracts.

Nick Neumann, right, general manager Sean Miller and Taylor Kress put together orders at Jimmy John's Gourmet Sandwiches in Urbandale, Wednesday, June 8, 2016. The franchise has consistently increased minimum wage over time.

"A lot of times you don’t get everything that you want," he said. "... That’s called compromise, that’s called a negotiation, something that folks evidently in this room don't understand, or at least some."

Supervisors voted 4-1 Tuesday on their second reading of an ordinance that would create a minimum wage of $8.75 an hour in April — rising to $10.75 an hour by January 2019. Supervisor Steve Van Oort cast the only dissenting vote. The board will consider a third and final reading at 9:30 a.m. Oct. 11.

While many members of Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement asked for a $15 minimum wage, a frustrated Hockensmith said a wage that high would lead cities to opt out of the wage hike altogether.

"For the life of me, I’ve never had anybody make a logical response as to why we would adopt an ordinance that we are 100 percent positive that all the communities are going to opt out of," he said. "That would impact no one."

Aside from pushing for a higher base wage, many who took the podium Tuesday called for two changes in Polk County's ordinance. They pushed for removal of an amendment added the week before that would freeze the tipped-worker minimum wage at $5 per hour, rather than keeping the rate at 60 percent of the overall minimum wage, as is currently laid out in state law. And many protested the separate wage for youth workers, a first-of-its-kind move in Iowa.

The Iowa Grocery Industry Association lobbied for the separate wage for younger workers, who they say are limited by law in the hours they can work and the duties they can perform. The Iowa Restaurant Association pushed for a freeze of tipped worker wages, arguing that servers and bartenders are among the highest paid workers in the hospitality business.

"To listen to the restaurant industry, these tipped workers are millionaires and billionaires," said Hugh Espey, executive director of Iowa CCI "... And it's time to stop kowtowing to the restaurant industry and the grocery industry. It's time to put people first."

Holly Herbert said the youth wage was discriminatory and questioned why Polk County would add a stipulation not mirrored in federal or state minimum wage laws.

"I don't understand why we are doing it in our county," she said, "when the other counties that have already raised the minimum wage have nothing like this in their ordinance."

Michael Adato, a 17-year-old senior at Waukee High School, complained that supervisors ignored requests to meet with young workers.

"We have memories." he said in his second address to the board. "We will not forget your lack of compassion for our young people."

After the barrage of complaints, Supervisor John Mauro argued that doing something on the minimum wage is better than nothing. He said a $15 minimum wage was a no-go for cities within Polk County.

"I'm confused," he said. "I say lets do this: Let's pull the whole thing and stay back at $7.25. Let's just forget about it."

Jessica Dunker, president and CEO of the Iowa Restaurant Association sat on the minimum wage task force. She thanked supervisors Tuesday for listening to all sides in drafting the ordinance.

"No one in the room is happy," she said. "And the fact that no one in the room is happy probably shows that compromise happened — bipartisan compromise."