Restaurant's New Fee Has People Angry

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Restaurant's New Fee Has People Angry

A restaurant in Colorado is facing some heat after they added a controversial fee to all of their bills.

Minimum wage in Colorado will gradually increase from $8.31 to $12 by 2020, while tipped service employees (like restaurant servers) will go from $6.28 to $8.98 in the same time frame.

While most restaurants will be adjusting their menu prices to account for the wage increase, the general manager of Corona's Mexican Grill has decided to be a little more blunt about it.

Corona's Mexican Grill has added an "A70 Service Fee" which is in reference to the state's new minimum wage law, Amendment 70. Lilith Marquez has added the new A70 charge to customers' bills so they "know where the increase on their bills came from."

Lilith says this new amendment will cost her company $185,000 between their 3 locations.

But while they were trying to be "honest" with customers, Corona's seems to have made more people angry than happy.

Continue reading to find out what the response to this new fee has been.

"It seemed like it was kind of excessive to have to charge an extra 10 percent, just to come up with an extra dollar per hour for the employees," said customer Chris Blakely.

Lilith, however, says the increase is necessary or else they would have to close. From the looks of it, though, people aren't mad about the money...they're mad about trying to make it seem like it's the wait-staff's fault for wanting a living wage.

A full-time Colorado worker who makes minimum wage will collect less than $25,000 a year BEFORE taxes.

"We need to be honest "“ the current federal minimum wage is a poverty wage," says Sen. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.)

Restaurant management says the fee is absolutely necessary because they are not a chain restaurant.

"We're not a franchise," says Lilith Marquez. "Family owned. We make all of our food from scratch."

After being hit with backlash for seemingly being upset they have to pay their employees fairly, Corona's has decided to remove the A70 service fee and just increase prices on the menu.

It begs the question, though, whose side are you on? Was it right of this restaurant to add this "fee" to make people aware the minimum wage is the reason their bill is higher, or was it just a way of complaining? Let us know!

Meagan has an intense love for Netflix, napping, and carbs.