You'll never understand until you work as a server
I'm a college graduate and actor who took a job as a server for flexibility. I can trade shifts to go to auditions and I can leave with money in my pocket. Of course I can get another job, I also work as a teacher for the arts, I have many skills, but serving is not a “last resort job”. Servers in California earn minimum+ tips. I took the job knowing that I would not have to live on minimum wage. My employers are expecting their patrons to tip, or else they would raise their prices and pay us higher hourly and no tip. There is also the option to work as a server for a catering company where one can earn $12-$20 an hour. Your tips will depend on which restaurant and which neighborhood. Sadly there is a cultural divide. Some folks will fight over the bill to pay for the whole family, order coffee and dessert for grandma when she’s totally full, then tip $5 and whisper “that’s just for you, don’t share with the busboy”.
If you can't afford to tip, then maybe you should not get the $2.99 coke, or skip the $2.50 avocado, or eat at home. I didn’t add the tip line to your bill, its standard. Feel free to leave a crappy tip, I’ll remember you, and you can expect crappy service next time. I always heard folks say "waitressing is a very hard job". Never believed until I worked as a waitress. Anyone can relay your order and offer suggestions with a smile, but people treat us like sh**. They think they are renting a slave for 45 minutes. They think we are miserable idiots and drones. Customer service pays at least $12 an hour in California, and that’s part of what we do as servers. We are people with rent and Sallie Mae to pay too ya know. If you hate tipping so much try Mc Donald’s or Hometown buffet. Buss your own table, get you own refill, scream at the cook in broken spanglish yourself. I personally love eating out, so when I serve I try and make it a pleasurable experience for my patrons. I know it’s expensive, so I only go out about 4 times a month, and when I do, I tip well. I even tip when things go wrong. I know that things happen that are out of the server’s control, but if they try to recover and keep me informed, I won’t punish them by taking food out of their kid’s mouth. If a server is rude or completely unhelpful and my food is bad, I leave an average tip and I don’t go back to that restaurant. If I get a bad tip myself and I know I’ve made some mistakes, I’m expecting it. But if I know I really tried to make a guest feel welcomed, I was funny, I was attentive and I was knowledgeable, they loved the food and I still get a bad tip, I assume the person is a cheapskate and I tell all the other servers so next time they won’t try so hard when they see you.
Janae
of CA
@
Nov 01, 2009 22:26:01 PM
Actually...
Shawn - the IRS taxes servers based on 15% of all the food/drink they sell. If your bill is $100, the government expects that the waiter made $15 from you as a tip, and taxes him or her accordingly. Additionally, the busboy and service bartenders all rely on the waiter to tip them out at the end of the night in order to make money. Sure, maybe the system could be better, but it's not up to the waiters and waitresses to change it.
I don't expect you to understand this but it's not exactly easy for some people (college students, people who can't afford higher education) to find jobs these days. Sometimes waiting tables is the best they can do. If you really care about them making a living wage, either lobby for that on your own time or just pay a goddam decent tip. Don't force them to get fired because they want more money from the establishment. Not tipping them because you think they should find a better job is ridiculous and cheap - you should really be ashamed of yourself.
David
of NY
@
Oct 03, 2009 14:55:45 PM
tipping has got so out of hand
since when is it the responsibility of the patron to make up for the poor wages some jobs pay, you know what the hourly wage is when you take a job, if not your a moron. Why should i have to tip for anything below excelent service? i dont tip unless something above and beyond happens. all that but its not the waiters fault the cook took too long to prep the food... I tip based on the overall experiance not just what the wiater does. an average job gets no tip... if you want the security of better wages come on get a REAL job... i have known many people who are wiaters and the law is that if tips dont bring the hourly wage to min wage the buisness must bring the wage up to min wage. I have never heard of a waiter who does not get at least min wage, it just doesn't happen. and most/all of tip jobs are not reported to IRS as income SO ITS TAX FREE. why should an unskilled job be making more that a skilled laborer does they shouldn't its plain and simple. if you have a problem with your pay go to the management and demand better pay then you know where you stand they either give you the raise you wanted or you have to again decide if the wage they offer is worth you working there. they are not holding a gun to your head and forcing you to keep working there... its your choice and you have to live with the outcome. if every job was a "tip" job then things would be different but who decided some jobs are worthy of a tip and some are not...
shawn
of OK
@
Jan 03, 2009 18:34:41 PM
standardize
Keep with the basics so expectations are clear:
15 - 18% for good service
20 - higher for Great service
1% for rudeness or non-existent service
0% for cashiers or counter servers
Tip the same in a recession; the percentages will rise and fall with the price of the bill
Chris DAG
of NJ
@
Jan 03, 2009 09:47:45 AM
Tipping
The tipping system is ok, I guess, but I would prefer if we didn't have it. For one thing, it leads to confusion. It's one thing for restaurants where almost everyone knows that you're supposed to tip. But there's all the other services where people might not know tips are expected, or they might not know a tip is not expected or even allowed.
To the person that said that prices would go up too much, sorry, that doesn't make sense. If the price now includes a tip (otherwise, as everyone says, don't go out to eat) then the total price in a tip-free system would be the same. The only caveat there is taxes - the tip system lets tip recipients stiff the government out of taxes they legally owe on the wages they receive.
Also I don't understand what's up with tip "inflation." For as long as I can remember the standard was 15%, but it's creeped up to 20%. The only problem is, inflation is already calculated into the tip because the price of the meal, which the tip is based on, went up. I've gotten a receipt with a precalculated 18%, 20%, 25% tip amounts shown on it - give me a break! Expecting 20% is just plain greedy.
Steve
of WA
@
Dec 29, 2008 00:45:06 AM
Actually...
It depends on the grocery store. At military commissaries, unless they've stopped that practice in the last ten years or so, customers do tip baggers. And there's nothing wrong with being paid for the quality of work you do; hourly pay doesn't quite accomplish that goal. A restaurant really couldn't go over minimum wage if it is not a high-end restaurant without making its meals beyond the reach of most potential customers. And if it resorts to buying the cheapest food possible then that'll show in the finished product, which will lose them business also. So they cut wages and expect the customer to pick up the slack.
Another thing about this kind of work is it varies so much. It might be a really busy night or it might be dead. It's the same for food delivery. It may not make sense to restaurant owners and food delivery services to pay a consistent wage when they are not consistently making money.
All stuff to think about. I agree with the OP that you shouldn't be going to a restaurant in the first place, or ordering delivery, if you can't afford to tip. A typical fifteen percent tip for me when I order pizza comes out to a little over three bucks. That's a box of breadsticks. If I would pay it for food, I can certainly pay it to the delivery person. Customers have no control, anyway, over the hourly wage an employee gets. That's set by state and federal law. Don't like it? Write to your state and federal representatives. Don't short someone who's working for a living.
Dana
of OH
@
Dec 27, 2008 11:23:44 AM
Tipping
I agree that you shouldnt partake if you can't afford the tip.
I've been tipping more - since I know business is down. I will continue to do so for good service as long as my job/salary/budget stays intact. It is wrong to stiff people if your budget is down.
FranticWoman
of
@
Dec 26, 2008 13:19:53 PM
Tipping used to be an appreciation of the service rendered...
So... No matter the amount of the Chinese food delivery, 20$ is still a very good tip for one single action... On the other hand, the waitress who served 4 tables, for the same bills’ amount, worked a lot more… She certainly should receive more than the delivery man!
Everything is relative…
Once upon a time, tipping was a way to show appreciation of the service rendered… Now, it is perceived as a due… Hence, this delivery refusing to deliver to a person who said she(he) would not pay more for delivery…
Well… When a restaurant (service, store, etc) advertises “Free delivery”, why should the customer supply for the business’ responsibility to pay their staff?
Tipping has come to such a ridiculous practice that the Quebec’s government, in Canada, is actually “income taxing” restaurant’s workers an additional 10% on declared their annual salary.
Why should you pay a tip on a 10 minutes taxi drive (when the driver does not have to handle a single piece of luggage, does not get out of the car to help you in, does not even bother to open the door for you!!!), but not leave a tip to a flight intendant who tendered to your every whishes for a few hours?
Tipping is an anachronism and should be totally discarded with. Workers should get a decent pay for their services and their bosses should be accounted for proper service…
E. Larose
@
Dec 25, 2008 09:05:41 AM
Ashamed?
That's right, we would be ashamed of neglecting proper service if we were getting tipped accordingly. However, when a tip reflects the economic status of the individual or even the nation, then perhaps the standard or service reflects something other than your prospective satisfactory level. Otherwise start tipping your doctor and see how your thoughts on peoples income changes.
George
of AZ
@
Dec 24, 2008 18:55:00 PM
tipping
I tip 15% on the food amt. NOT the total. I don't tip on the tax. If I eat out in the evening I tip 20%. If I am with a large group I do not tip extra if the tip has already been put on for me. It's a insult when they do this and short changing themselves.
Kimberly Palmer, senior editor for U.S. News & World Report, writes about how to save money, avoid scams, manage debt, and be a savvy shopper. Send your personal finance questions to her for expert money advice.
Janae of CA @ Nov 01, 2009 22:26:01 PM
David of NY @ Oct 03, 2009 14:55:45 PM
shawn of OK @ Jan 03, 2009 18:34:41 PM
Chris DAG of NJ @ Jan 03, 2009 09:47:45 AM
Steve of WA @ Dec 29, 2008 00:45:06 AM
Dana of OH @ Dec 27, 2008 11:23:44 AM
FranticWoman of @ Dec 26, 2008 13:19:53 PM
E. Larose @ Dec 25, 2008 09:05:41 AM
George of AZ @ Dec 24, 2008 18:55:00 PM
kathy riley of TX @ Dec 23, 2008 09:59:14 AM
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