San Francisco costs already are among the nation's highest, experts say. "It costs me triple to hire a waiter than a New York City restaurant," Scherotter said. Health insurance costs at his Palio D'Asti are doubling to $120,000 a year under the new program, he said.
To be sure, owners like Weinberg and Phan pride themselves on sharing the liberal-leaning social values that are as much a part of their hometown as the Golden Gate Bridge. But as employers who depend on large numbers of waiters, cooks and busboys, they insist that they're being unfairly singled out to make San Francisco the first place in the state to offer universal health services.
Local establishments, they point out, already are paying a $9.36 hourly minimum wage, the nation's second highest and 17% higher than in any other California city. They also are the only employers in the state required by law to grant paid sick days to all workers.
The Golden Gate Restaurant Assn. has turned that gripe into a lawsuit against the city. The U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals is scheduled to hear oral arguments April 17 in Pasadena.
What's next? There are no plans for a dish-washing surcharge or a fee for laundering tablecloths. But the city is considering ordering restaurant chains to put nutrition information on menus.
--
marc.lifsher@latimes.com
