[EDITOR’S NOTE: The following is a Letter to the Editor, written and submitted by a verified Burien resident. It represents the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of South King Media or its staff.]
Today, Burien is on the verge of a historic shift towards economic justice as preliminary results suggest a victory for the working-class minimum wage initiative. This is a win for every hardworking Burien family and a step away from the turbulence we see at the federal level, where chaos, tariffs and corporate interests undermine the stability of working families.
Growing up in a restaurant worker’s family and spending a third of my professional career in the service industry has given me firsthand insight into the struggles that small family businesses navigate. The severe impacts of the 2008 financial crisis on stable employment, including my father’s struggle to find work after the restaurant closed, have deeply influenced my commitment to fair wage legislation that supports not just employees but also the small businesses that employ them.
Key aspects of this working-class minimum wage initiative legislation include:
- Rejecting a tip credit, which is a penalty on the working poor.
- Ensuring that corporate franchises like McDonald’s and Wendy’s are not afforded special corporate loopholes that undermine fair competition and worker rights.
Although only Deputy Mayor Sarah Moore and I stood firm on these principles at the Burien City Council, the majority of the council passed minimum wage ordinances that primarily focused on wealthy corporate interests, neglecting the pressing needs of working families struggling to afford basic necessities like eggs. Despite this, the people of Burien remained resilient. They organized, gathered signatures, and ensured their voices were heard through the ballot, actively challenging a climate that too often favors corporate greed over the economic security of working-class families.
Looking ahead, my dedication to our small businesses is stronger than ever, particularly as they navigate the challenges of wage adjustments and rising commercial rent costs. I firmly believe that the foundation of successful businesses lies in just and fair compensation for frontline workers, similar to the challenges my father faced. This belief is not just a personal stance; it is a community mandate, by and for WE THE PEOPLE. We are committed to creating policies that not only safeguard the well-being of our workers but also support our small businesses, ensuring they can thrive without compromising the dignity and security of those who keep them running. Addressing these challenges is crucial for maintaining a healthy balance that nurtures our local economy and supports everyone involved, from business owners to workers, immigrants, and the youth in fast-food establishments.
Thank you, Burien, for championing progress and fairness. This victory serves as a reminder that our role as elected representatives is to prioritize WE THE PEOPLE. I have and will continue to prioritize the working-class majority and center those furthest from justice in Burien as we strive for a community that truly values justice and prosperity for all.
– Immigrant Councilmember Hugo Garcia
City of Burien
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Foolish blather as he and the others who voted for this will have only themselves to blame as the fallout begins, as small businesses close or other drop benefits and hours they should know it’s all on them for the suffering. They should make sure to visit these businesses and admit the responsibility they hold for the upcoming hardship and wish them well as they seek new employment.
You go councilor Garcia!
Moving words of wisdom.
Happy to live in Burien tonight.
It’s ironic that you saw your father lose his restaurant, and are now celebrating an initiative that will cause other people like your father to lose their’s.
If you really understood how restaurant economics worked you would understand that the initiate you helped pass might raise wages for some workers, but will lower incomes for all of them, while also raising prices, making Burien restaurants less affordable for the workers you claim to help, and for everyone else as well.
A tip credit is a sane policy passed by Democrats in several states like New York and Colorado. It helps severs and bartenders to make more, keeps wages up for back of house, and allows customers to pay more or less depending on their ability.
You and Sarah Moore did not “defeat wealthy corporate interests” as you claim. That’s a just you charging at windmills. What you’re doing is hurting workers AND small businesses. And make no doubt, those small businesses do not support you at all. In fact, they are afraid of speaking truth to your power because your small group of leftist activists will boycott them and harm them even more than you are now.
This ordinance wasn’t passed because Burien workers rose up to support it. It was funded by big labor and professional Socialist groups from outside Burien who spent over $135,000 to pass it. Their campaign, one that you supported, was dishonest and deceitful. As a result, over
the next several years we’ll see what’s happening in Seattle happen in Burien – restaurants closing, worker’s incomes going down as their hours and benefits get cut, and small local businesses being replaced by more large corporate fast food and counter service chains businesses. It’s a loss for Burien, and you should not wallow in it so much.
Thank you, couldn’t have stated it better.
^
**David
Hugo, you claim to care about and to have helped local small businesses. But in fact you took away the exemption that other neighboring cities have for small businesses and are applying the highest minimum wage in the world that in Tukwila only applies to large corporations, to Burien’s small businesses.
But I am glad you are willing to work with the small business community here to create policies that will help us deal the now massive increases in wages and rents you have helped create. I’d love to help put together a meeting with you and a coalition of local restaurants owners including the many from the Latino community to discuss what policy ideas you have that will lower costs for us. We’d love to hear more about these policies, because up to now you haven’t mentioned them. But we’re excited to learn more. I’ll reach out to your office tomorrow.
Thanks Hugo, understand some change. As a business owner with (not huge margins) I’ll be letting go 1 of my employees to balance costs. Along with losing some profit and output as a business. Depresssing at this (economic) point in time, but will adapt.
We the People? We’ll be moving our business out of Burien come Q2 this year (7years here), now this and prior battle against the homeless/theft has made our decision. Not sure I would cheer too much, there’ll be many Burien businesses that will have to sacrifice a lot or go under. I wish I could celebrate this for everyone else’s gain but how could I?
Thank you, CM Garcia! <3
Thanks Hugo. This result is great for Burien and for the working class.
These comments would be hilarious if they weren’t so disgusting. So many bad faith arguments, disturbing lack of empathy for working class families/burien citizens, and even more disturbing amount of apathy for corruption (some of these commenters here are even the ones doing the corrupting).
Keep fighting the good fight, Hugo. We need your leadership and Sarah’s leadership now more than ever.
Hi, I’m a single mother, Burien resident, who’s been in the restaurant business my entire career. I started working in downtown Seattle for many years but left the area around 2020 as it was too dangerous to be working there. I’ve been working in Tukwila & Burien at small restaurants for the remainder of years and find that this wage increase will probably hurt more than help the working class. How do you think small businesses will be able to cope with the increased costs, corporations I can understand?
I’ve been struggling my entire life financially but this initiative will soon be negatively affecting me. I believe the only change that needed to possibly happen was for corporations to pay fair wages, I don’t see why small business needed this change. Anyways, there talking about cutting benefits where I work and now I’m probably going to need a new job. I don’t know if your speaking for yourself or for others when you say “this is great for Burien and for the working class” but I have to respectfully disagree, I think there could have been much better planning and roll out.
Well, it’s nice to see the table is set for right wingers to erroneously assign blame for business struggles, when Trump policies coming down the pike will be the real cause. Examples: tariffs on imports making food more expensive, tariffs also making other business inputs like building materials more expensive, deportations reducing the available workforce, etc.
It’s kind of funny in its predictability, but really pretty sad.
To Ms. Ramos, Thank you for your insight and first hand thoughts on this. Time will tell if this wage increase will hurt or help all involved. I’m not sure what sort of work you have been doing at these restaurants you’ve worked your whole life but if you are in need of a change please look up Charlie’s Produce, they have openings for all types of positions and they are a great company to work for, I worked and retired from them after 25yrs.
Good luck to you.