Restaurants accuse city of miscalculating server wages

A restaurant association said that Albuquerque servers have been overpaid for several years because of a calculation error by the city.

The New Mexico Restaurant Association last week accused the city of Albuquerque of miscalculating the minimum wages of servers in Albuquerque in recent years.

The result, according to the association, is that the minimum wage has been inflated since 2021.

The NMRA said in a news release that the 2024 minimum wage for servers in Albuquerque should be 60% of $11.25 per hour, which amounts to $6.75 an hour. However, the association said that the city has based the minimum wage at 60% of $12 per hour, which is the state minimum wage and brings the wage for servers to $7.20 per hour.

The city’s minimum wage is $11.25. However, the city’s website said the state minimum wage of $12 per hour supersedes the city’s minimum.

“The city was supposed to calculate (the wage for servers) on the city’s minimum wage, not the state’s minimum wage,” said Carol Wight, the CEO of the restaurant association.

The city recently updated its website with information on minimum wages for 2025. The website says that server wages next year will stay the same at 60% of $12 per hour, or $7.20 per hour.

“Our analysis indicates that the mayor and city administration have knowingly miscalculated the minimum wage ordinance, leading to an inflated local minimum cash wage for tipped workers, resulting in millions of dollars incorrectly paid by employers,” the restaurant association said in a news release.

“Effective January 1, 2025, the City of Albuquerque minimum wage is $11.50 per hour,” according to the city’s website. “However, the State of New Mexico’s $12.00 per hour minimum wage supersedes the City’s minimum wage and is the prevailing wage. This prevailing wage is $12.00 per hour.”

The City Council in August attempted to raise the minimum wage to $12 an hour, lower the minimum wage for tipped employees and clarify how cost of living affects minimum wage. The effort was unsuccessful.

“We acknowledge a gray area in the calculation and have asked (City Council) to clarify the issue; in the meantime we are not going to unilaterally cut wages for bartenders and servers in our city,” said Staci Drangmeister, a spokesperson for the city.

Wight said that the restaurant association is considering legal action over the disagreement.