The federal court in Colorado will decide if President Joe Biden exceeded his authority by mandating outdoor recreation companies operating on federal property to pay their employees an hourly minimum wage of $15, plus overtime.
According to a report, Duke Bradford, owner of Arkansas Valley Adventures and the Colorado River Outfitters Association, asked U.S. District Court Chief Judge Philip A. Brimmer to block the implementation of an executive order that sets a $15 minimum wage for federal contractors. The new requirements will take effect on January 30.
At a hearing, the plaintiffs claimed they were not government contractors and had merely obtained permits from federal agencies for outdoor recreation in public land.
Biden’s executive order revoked one which was issued three years before the presidency of Donald Trump, which deemed seasonal river guides exempt from higher minimum wage requirements to keep outdoor recreation accessible to all.
“There’s no explanation from President Biden about why the exception should go away. The fact that they had permits with the federal government can’t be the reason why the president, acting through the Department of Labor, can set wage conditions on my client,” said Caleb J. Kruckenberg, representing the plaintiffs.
In contrast, Brimmer appeared hesitant to claim that Biden was acting outside of federal law by simply disagreeing with the prior administration’s logic that a hike in the minimum wage of outfitters was not economically wise for the federal government.
“Obviously, President Trump came to that conclusion, and there probably are good reasons that he came to that conclusion,” Brimmer said.
“But if President Biden came to a different conclusion and he provided an explanation, why do you, why can I second guess that conclusion without intruding upon a decision that is to be made, pursuant to statute, by the president?” Brimmer added.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, the outdoor recreation industry contributes nearly $10 billion to Colorado’s economy and employs 119,000 people.
Bradford, who opened Arkansas Valley Adventures in 1998, is home to around 15 full-time employees and 250 seasonal employees.
The peak season for river rafting usually runs between mid-May through Labor Day, and trips can last as long as three days and two nights for the guides and customers. Instead of an hourly wage, Bradford negotiates trip salary and a trip of three days that can cost between $400 to $500 for the guides.
If the minimum wage order applied to his company, Bradford testified that costs would go up and revenue would decrease.
Unless Brimmer can stop the increase, Biden’s wage hike is scheduled to take effect at the end of January. The order, along with the associated Department of Labor regulations, also provides an overtime wage of $22.50. This applies to contracts and contract-like instruments created or renewed after January 30.
The lawsuit filed against the minimum wage order states that Biden exceeded his power in using federal land permits as the basis for regulating the compensation of river guides and that the Department of Labor’s rules are unconstitutional and arbitrary. In requesting an injunction, the plaintiffs referred to the expenses they’ll pay for the $15 an hour, plus overtime.
Bradford said that according to his experiences, guides who manage single-day trips sometimes want to work as long as possible. The permit that his company received issued by the Bureau of Land Management allows activities in the Colorado River but needs renewal in March. He stated that Arkansas River Adventures would end overnight trips and assign seasonal workers on 40-hour work schedules if the wage rules go through.
“We’ll hire more staff and go to a four-day workweek,” he said. “All these people live at our facility, so if we have to hire twice as much staff to do the same work, then we’ll need more housing. All of that will drive expenses up.”
David Costlow, executive director for the other plaintiff, Colorado River Outfitters Association, stated that all 50 employees of his group would find themselves adjusting all wages upward, not simply those that fell below $15.
The employees might also join companies that do not operate on federal lands and let guides work as many hours as they wanted.
Brimmer did not clearly indicate how he would rule on the request for a preliminary injunction. On the one hand, he wondered what impending harm would befall Arkansas Valley Adventures and the outfitters association without an immediate court order. On the other hand, he questioned whether a financial impact on the government existed to justify the use of presidential authority.
The parties did not call on any seasonal guides for testimony on the impact of the rules.
The case is Bradford et al. v. U.S. Department Of Labor et al.