Write a Defensible Thesis Requiring Proof Practice Test
•15 QuestionsRead the student passage and answer the question that follows.
A restaurant group is urging the state to raise the tipped minimum wage, arguing that customers should not be responsible for making sure workers earn enough. Servers are divided: some say tips can be great on busy nights, while others say income is unpredictable and depends on bias from customers. A state labor report notes that in counties with more tourism, average tipped wages are higher, while in rural counties, tipped workers report more weeks where they earn below a living wage.
Tipping is treated like a tradition, but traditions can hide unfairness. When pay depends on customers, workers’ income depends on things they can’t control: weather, slow seasons, and even whether a customer is in a generous mood. That unpredictability makes it hard to budget. It also invites bias, because studies and personal experiences suggest that some workers are tipped less based on race, gender, or accent.
Raising the tipped minimum wage wouldn’t eliminate tipping, but it would create a floor so workers aren’t punished for slow shifts. Restaurants argue prices will rise, but prices already rise when customers tip; the difference is transparency. If a meal costs more because workers are paid fairly, customers can see that cost upfront instead of playing a guessing game at the end. A higher base wage would make service work more stable without banning tipping for people who still want to reward great service.
Which version of the thesis best reflects the argument developed in the passage?
Read the student passage and answer the question that follows.
A restaurant group is urging the state to raise the tipped minimum wage, arguing that customers should not be responsible for making sure workers earn enough. Servers are divided: some say tips can be great on busy nights, while others say income is unpredictable and depends on bias from customers. A state labor report notes that in counties with more tourism, average tipped wages are higher, while in rural counties, tipped workers report more weeks where they earn below a living wage.
Tipping is treated like a tradition, but traditions can hide unfairness. When pay depends on customers, workers’ income depends on things they can’t control: weather, slow seasons, and even whether a customer is in a generous mood. That unpredictability makes it hard to budget. It also invites bias, because studies and personal experiences suggest that some workers are tipped less based on race, gender, or accent.
Raising the tipped minimum wage wouldn’t eliminate tipping, but it would create a floor so workers aren’t punished for slow shifts. Restaurants argue prices will rise, but prices already rise when customers tip; the difference is transparency. If a meal costs more because workers are paid fairly, customers can see that cost upfront instead of playing a guessing game at the end. A higher base wage would make service work more stable without banning tipping for people who still want to reward great service.
Which version of the thesis best reflects the argument developed in the passage?