On November 8, 2022, voters in the District of Columbia overwhelmingly passed Initiative 82 (I-82) with 74% of the vote to raise the minimum wage for tipped workers from a subminimum wage of just $5.35 per hour to the full minimum wage plus tips over five years, and for it to continue to rise, along with the full minimum wage, with inflation. In April, One Fair Wage reported that restaurant employment reached
its highest point since the pandemic in 2025 while earnings continued to
climb.