Republican lawmakers in Florida want people to have the option of earning less money in order to land new jobs. Democrats, however, call it an attack on the state's minimum wage amendment passed by voters. Right now, a constitutional amendment guarantees a $1 per hour raise in the state's minimum wage every September. It's $13 per hour right now, and just under $10 for tipped employees. But Republican lawmakers are moving a bill that would allow employers to pay less. HB 541 would let an employee opt out of being paid the prevailing minimum wage for up to 12 months for trainees or apprentices, and up to nine months or two semesters for students in work-study programs or internships. Employers would be barred from coercing prospective hires into agreeing to earn less. WESH 2 spoke with students on the campus of the University of Central Florida who said, to them, it seems like it's taking workforce pay in the wrong direction. "I mean, we have a lot to pay for here and a lot of kids don't have scholarships and everything else," Haley Thyll said. Student Mitchell Shafirovich responded with, "I mean, I totally disagree with this. Some people just need it just to get by, you know? "It's sad but predictable," said Attorney John Morgan.Morgan financed and successfully passed the 2020 minimum wage measure. He says Republican lawmakers are just following direction from the corporate donors. "And so, it's just another example of why Tallahassee does not work for us," he said. But the trades industry, weathering a shortage of welders, electricians and others in skilled labor, says it needs wage flexibility. "What it does is it allows the employee to opt out of that mandated minimum wage to gain the experience they otherwise would not have," said Tim Nungesser, NFIB Florida legislative director. The wage bill could go to the House floor for a vote next week.