Kelsey Briggs
Nov. 17, 2018
OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. – OSU-531 sparked controversy amongst members of the House and Senate. The hot topic freshmen bill was killed in the Senate chambers shortly after it was presented and caucused. Minimum wage is set to not increase in the state of Oklahoma.
Caucusing in the chamber arose once delegates focused on amending the bill with specific segments to inflation rates and the increasing cost of living in Oklahoma. Senators discussed that if an individual worked 40 hours a week, with the minimum wage at $7.25 and tax expenses at nearly 15 percent, workers could only take home roughly $246.5 to their families at the end of the week. The bill exempted minors from the rise of minimum wage. Amendment one was introduced was in the favor of minors. Minors would be able to work over the standard of 18 hours a week and over 3 hours a day after class ends. The amendment was in violation of child labor laws in the state of Oklahoma.
“I was encouraged that good support was present before I introduced the bill in the Senate. I didn’t exactly expect it to pass in this climate but I hoped it would. I did enjoy the experience and hope to present future bills to the Senate,” said Emilie Tindle, House of Representatives member and bill author.
OSU-531 was set to increase the wages for those in the food industry. On average, waiters and waitresses receive nearly $2.50/hour plus the commission of tips. The bill would have allowed for those individuals to be included on the minimum wage pay roll. The increase of 1 percent annually would also be included on the bill.
The minimum wage pay raise deemed “too faulty” forapproval and lead to failure with a vote of roughly seven in favor and nearly fifteen opposed. OSU-531 was the first bill to fail in the Senate dealing with minimum wage. The Senate will prepare for more bills throughout the day as the House continues to pass bills of their own throughout the day. The next bill heard was OPSU-004 and it pertains to payments of college athletes.