Ben Albritton says bill to lower minimum wage is dead

TALLAHASSEE, FLA. 11/19/24-Senate President Ben Albritton, R-Wauchula, speaks during organizational session, Tuesday at the Capitol in Tallahassee. COLIN HACKLEY PHOTO

Senate President Ben Albritton said a controversial bill that sought to pay some workers below the minimum wage is dead.

“To tell you the truth, I think if somebody works, whether they’re being an apprentice or whatever, minimum wage is actually in the Constitution for a reason,” Albritton told reporters.

“Does that mean it’s dead?” a reporter asked Albritton about the bill.

“I would expect so,” the Senate President said in the final days of Session.

SB 676/HB 541 would have allowed workers to voluntarily opt in and receive pay below the minimum wage if they are in a work-study, internship, or apprenticeship.

The Senate President spoke on Thursday, days after Sen. Jonathan Martin announced he was temporarily postponing his SB 676 to “keep HB 541 alive” in some of the last-minute committee maneuverings this Session.

Martin’s TP came after the Senate Rules Committee started debating the bill and members of the public had already spoken out against it.

Democrats and the Florida AFL-CIO expressed concerns that employers would exploit the system and try to save costs by reclassifying jobs as internships. They also argued that Martin was going against the will of the voters, who had approved a state minimum wage increase.

“Are you asking us today, here and now, to supersede what the voters of this state have already identified as to what they want?” Democratic Sen. Tracie Davis asked Martin during Tuesday’s debate.

Meanwhile, Republicans countered that there needs to be reform so that people can gain skills while being paid less, which could pay off in the long run for their careers. In Committee, some Republicans brought up horse training as one profession that fit the bill’s intent.

“I see it providing opportunities that don’t currently exist under this economic and educational framework that we have,” said Martin, a Fort Myers Republican, on Tuesday, shortly before he tabled the bill.

The House version of the bill passed through the Committee process and was added to the second reading calendar, but no vote has been scheduled for the House floor.