Amanda Forrester / news@whmi.com

Michigan servers and bartenders are hosting a roundtable on Friday to discuss concerns over the changes to the state’s tipped wages.

The event will take place at 10:30 a.m. on Aug. 23 at the Townsend Hotel in Birmingham.

“Following the Michigan Supreme Court’s recent ruling on the unconstitutional use of ‘Adopt and Amend’ by the legislature, servers and bartenders from around the state are asking the legislature to act quickly to save our tipping system, their income and their jobs,” a press release for the event said.

According to experts, the ruling, handed down on July 31, will begin ending the tip credit in February. This will result in servers and bartenders turning into standard minimum wage workers.

“This would change the tipping culture, lower workers’ income and cause skyrocketing costs for restaurants that will eliminate jobs,” the press release said.

The press release quoted a recent survey saying, “79% of servers fear they will lose their jobs if the tipped credit is eliminated and 83% want to keep the current system in place.”

John Selleck, a spokesperson for the group Save MI Tips, said servers are already seeing a shift in the interactions with customers.

“Servers are alarmed right now because they’re hearing from their customers that they think it’s a done deal and think that they’re making a full minimum wage, so somehow that changes the relationship between customers and servers,” Selleck said. “Servers are starting to experience lower tips and that means lower income and there’s a lot of fear they’re going to lose their jobs.”

Selleck said ensuring the tip credit remains will help “preserve the system and the relationship between customers and servers.”

Supporters of the tip credit say that legislators can help by working to amend the law before it takes effect in February.