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Living & Working in Great Places
Abolishing Tipping?
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Coly Hope on -
That could be good or bad. When you are very busy you could make good money in fact I have made up to $500 a week however when business is down you are hurting for money. By restaurants paying above the minimum wage employees could actually figure out a budget instead of wondering if this week will be a good week tip wise or a bad week.
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Permalink Reply by akscootr on -
No tippy, No worky. To me, the Marine corps was in some respects easier than waiting tables; So the only way that waiting tables is worth anything to me is the prospect of walking home with a thick pocket.... otherwise why bother? There is no way I would do the job without making a high income...
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Permalink Reply by Keith Larson on -
This article advocates having standard service charges. I hate "service charges" and they are definitely not equal to tips/gratuities. It's difficult for some service employees to grasp the difference, and I have met very few people outside that understand that they are not the same thing.
Many state labor codes, when they address the terms, have something like this: A tip is a voluntary amount left by a patron for an employee. A mandatory service charge is an amount that a patron is required to pay based on a contractual agreement or a specified required service amount listed on the menu of an establishment. An example of a mandatory service charge that is a contractual agreement would be a 10 or 15 percent charge added to the cost of a banquet. Such charges are considered as amounts owed by the patron to the establishment and are not gratuities voluntarily left for the employees. Therefore, when an employer distributes all or part of a service charge to its employees, the distribution may be at the discretion of the employer.
Ok, simpler...a service charge is an amount paid to the employer. That employer may keep or distribute whatever amount they wish from all to nothing. I have seen both ends and many spots between. I dislike them when I have to tell someone that a service charge might not mean the amount they will receive. I really dislike it when a person paying a service charge thinks it's a generous amount and really it might not mean a thing to the person actually serving them. I really hate them when I'm at a place and I have no idea where that employer is on the amount they distribute.
Now that I have that out of my system...I would like to say that I do not understand some of the places I see tip jars. Like fast food counters and other take outs.
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Permalink Reply by reggiecohen on -
i dont like tips jars either its seems like there forcing u to tip rather the service is good or bad
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Permalink Reply by Coly Hope on
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I do not like tip jars either. At a ski resort I worked at there was a small grocery store with a tip jar with a note on that read "We can not pay our employees as much as we would like so please leave a tip for them so they may have some spending money" or something to that effect. Not only that but in a morning meeting our boss told us be sure to leave something in the tip jar. It was one of the most pathetic things I seen an employer do.
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Permalink Reply by Kathi on -
Well I don't see how tipping "may help make bars, restaurants, and coffee shops more interesting." What's up with that??
She proposes doing away with the tip and proposing a standard service fee. That way employers can still get the customers to pay part of their employees' wages. (That's my cynical editorial comment, not the authors.)
If you look at the table on this page, you'll see the fed law and state laws re: the hourly wage they must pay tipped employees.
http://www.paywizard.org/main/Minimumwageandovertime/MinimumWageTIP...
Questions to ponder:
What if service industry professionals currently in tipped positions were paid a fair wage and tipping by the customer was strictly based on if they felt the employee had gone above and beyond their job description in giving service? No standard 15 - 20% anymore. Wasn't that the original idea anyhow?
What would a fair wage be for service industry professionals - i.e, servers, bartenders?
And wouldn't the years in the industry or the level of service/skill set required play into that figure? (Just like in any other position.)
How about all the other minimum wage workers who don't get tips? Even if they go above and beyond? You guys say you don't like tip jars so is it just table side service and bar side service workers that deserve tips?
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Permalink Reply by Keith Larson on
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I think the act of tipping is much older. It was probably class based originally. Either to keep the servant knowing they were servants...or as a guilt assuagers. The payment for service thing probably is more of a 20th century definition. The commie scares made the "working class" disappear in many parts of the country. It also scared many away from any direct correlations to classes. I'm guessing that "the standard" has varied widely throughout time also.
I'm not convinced the system is really broken. As far as tip jars...it's just those that have popped up in not usual places. I've seen them in fast food restaurants, movie theatres, groceries...
And I am very much against the "service charge" for reasons I stated earlier.
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Permalink Reply by Rich on -
Re: tipping making the businesses more interesting.
Employees who are hoping to attract better tips tend to be more outgoing and upbeat, and more inclined to go beyond just serving your drinks and food and actually entertaining you.
As for m, I don't care what kind of place it is, classy or not, tip jars and in-check automatic gratuities mean I won't do business there. I did the restaurant business for 18 years, if you want tips, earn them, but don't beg for them.
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Permalink Reply by Jim Tobin on -
I took a vacation in England awhile back and was surprised when my friend told me tipping wasn't necessary. The service people, bartenders and such get a good wage. I ate mostly in pubs so I'm not sure about fine dining restaurants but it seems places over there are able to pay their staff enough.
All I ever hear is that restaurants will all go out of business if they have to pay a living wage. It's the same every time the minimum wage goes up a few cents. How many boarded up McDonalds do you see every day?
They also seem to be able to see a doctor if they need to without taking out a loan but don't let me get started on that.
I say that if you can't afford to pay your employees a living wage then get out of the business. It can be done. it is being done in other countries.
I know the article was promoting a service charge and maybe I got a little off subject. I don't like service charges either. It's just another way of me paying the salaries of the employees.
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Permalink Reply by Rich on
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McDonalds can get away with paying minimum wage, the bulk of their employees are teenagers wanting extra money for high school or college, or unskilled adults with few other options. "Real" restaurants (no disrespect to the fast food industry, I did it for a while, it's a job that needs done) need skilled employees and have to compete with other restaurants for the labor pool. Try and run a fine dining place paying your staff min wage and youre doomed.
I kind of like the idea of service charges, actually. Being someone who knows the business, front and back of the house, I can better decide if your place is a good value, based on the actual cost of the food, and the amount youre charging to serve it to me (based on the quality of service, of course).
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Permalink Reply by ken horner on -
I like tipping cause it gives me the ability to say thanks for good service or a goo ole penny for bad service
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Permalink Reply by reggiecohen on
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the company i work for in the kitchen department they pool all the tips from the bar an we get them sometimes i get between 10 to 15 an night in tips just for being an prep cook
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