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Albuquerque mayor calls for minimum wage to be tied back to cost of living
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Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller is calling on the City Council to pass a that would tie minimum wage back to the cost of living without a proposed amendment that would lower tipped employee minimum wage.
鈥淔or some reason, trying to help those folks has all of a sudden been not basic and has gotten mired in all sorts of interesting politics,鈥� Keller said at a news conference Thursday with City Councilors Nichole Rogers and Tammy Fiebelkorn. 鈥淲e鈥檙e here today first and foremost to just take a step back and remind everyone what we鈥檙e trying to do with this ordinance.鈥�
Albuquerque鈥檚 minimum wage has traditionally been higher than the state minimum, Keller said.
Existing city ordinance annually raises the city minimum wage based on the consumer price index. So when inflation raises prices, Albuquerque鈥檚 minimum wage automatically goes up. In 2024, the cost of living increase adjusted the city rate from $10.70 to $11.10.
But in recent years, the state of New Mexico raised the state minimum wage above Albuquerque鈥檚 minimum. Workers now are paid the higher of the two minimums, the $12 per hour state rate.
That means that Albuquerque workers no longer benefit from the cost of living increase built into local law. The minimum wage bill would raise the Albuquerque minimum wage to $12, matching the state minimum, so in future years workers can again benefit from cost of living increases.
鈥淚t ensures that Albuquerque continues to lead the way on minimum wage,鈥� Keller said. 鈥淲hether it鈥檚 a traditional minimum wage or a tipped wage, Albuquerque should be at the higher end of our wage scale with respect to the state of New Mexico.鈥�
The bill would also make it easier for Albuquerque to address wage violations.
鈥淲e have had cases of wage theft in our city,鈥� said Rogers, the bill鈥檚 sponsor. 鈥淪o for me, the point of this is to also strengthen enforcement, because we have folks who have been victims of wage theft.鈥�
When the bill was brought to the Albuquerque City Council on Aug. 5, Councilor Rene虂e Grout attempted to amend it so that the minimum wage for tipped employees would be lowered from $7.20 per hour to the state rate of $3.
The bill was deferred to the Aug. 19 council meeting on a 5-4 vote. Councilors Joaquin Baca, Brook Bassan, Klarissa Pe帽a, Fiebelkorn and Rogers voted to defer, while Dan Champine, Grout, Dan Lewis and Louie Sanchez voted against a deferral.
A call to withdraw
Grout and Bassan have announced their support for withdrawing the minimum wage bill altogether, so that business owners and employees can be further consulted.
鈥淭he city鈥檚 current tipped minimum wage structure has created inequality in our restaurant workforce and hurt small businesses, and it鈥檚 just not sustainable,鈥� Grout said in a statement. 鈥淭he Minimum Wage Ordinance needs a thorough examination to make sure it鈥檚 working for employees and employers alike. I鈥檓 eager to hear from the community about how we can make this ordinance fair and equitable.鈥�
The call to withdraw the bill marks a shift from Grout and Bassan鈥檚 previous stance.
Before the ordinance was deferred, Rogers tried and failed to withdraw the bill on a 5-4 vote. Rogers, Baca, Fiebelkorn and Pe帽a voted for the withdrawal, while Bassan, Champine, Grout, Lewis and Sanchez voted against.
鈥淲e know it鈥檚 not OK to take wages away from workers, period. ... And the only reason I asked for a withdrawal is because that amendment came to take away pay from hardworking people, and I am not OK ever with doing that,鈥� Rogers said Thursday.
She wants to see the minimum wage bill pass as introduced, without the amendment to lower tipped employee wages.
National conversation
Tipped employees have become part of a larger national conversation after both presidential candidates, Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump, made recent calls to eliminate federal income tax on tips.
Keller supports that idea.
鈥淩ight now, literally at City Council Monday, we鈥檙e fighting to raise minimum wage in Albuquerque, and we support federal efforts to keep money in the hands of workers that they can turn around and spend in their local community,鈥� Keller said in a statement.
