WASHINGTON (DC News Now) — More than a year after the implementation of Initiative 82 council members are evaluating the impact. On Wednesday, councilmember Anita Bonds hosted a public roundtable to seek feedback on its implementation. Initiative 82, which passed in November of 2022, phases out the tipped minimum wage by 2027.  Under the law, tipped workers see an annual raise until their hourly wage matches that of nontipped workers. Advocates of Initiative 82 say service charges are causing confusion The tipped minimum wage was raised to $10 an hour in July of 2024 and will increase again to $12 in July of 2025. Yet many restaurant workers testified that the change has negatively impacted them. “I’ve chosen this as my career because I love everything about food and making people happy,” said Yana Tarakanova, who works at Hank’s Oyster Bar. “[Since I-82] my working hours were cut by five to 10 hours a week. The newly implemented service fee, the 5% fee, decreased my average tip percentage.” Restaurant owners also testified that the wage increases are not sustainable. “It’s going to go up to $18 an hour. No small business can afford that,” said Billy Martin, owner of Martin’s Tavern. According to data presented by the Employment Policies Institute, D.C. lost roughly 1,000 full-service restaurant jobs between May of 2023 and May of 2024, the first full year of Initiative 82. The organization attributed that data to the Federal Bureau of Labor Statistics. “We think that is probably a conservative figure because that doesn’t capture things like scheduling reductions, hiring reductions, things like that. It’s just a net loss number from May 2023 to the year after,” explained Rebekah Paxton, Research Director at EPI. DC Attorney General issues advisory for restaurants to better disclose fees She said their data predicts things will get worse if I-82 remains in place. “We’ve also done some survey data that says if this continues into 2027 as planned, restaurant owners are bracing for another round of layoffs, another round of price hikes, service charges things like that. These effects are not going to go away,” she said. During testimony some witnesses called for a freeze on I-82, keeping the tipped minimum wage at $10. Others called for it to be entirely overturned. Still, supporters are pushing on with full implementation. “Taking that away is just going to put (tipped workers) back in a position they’re fighting to get away from,” said Rebecca Pearce, DMV Worker Organizer for One Fair Wage. The group argues that restaurant jobs have remained steady in D.C., not decreased. “These employers don’t want to pay their workers. They rely on us as the consumers to pay their workers. The reason people are losing jobs is because of greed,” said Pearce. DC voters approve Initiative 82 to increase minimum wage for tipped workers The organization's President, Saru Jayaraman, said voters won this raise. “D.C. voters chose fair wages for workers, and the data shows they were right. Wages are rising, restaurants are thriving, and the lies pushed by corporate lobbyists are being exposed. This is about giving workers a fair shot while strengthening our economy,” Jayaraman said.