Quote:
Originally Posted by Larchap49
I'm confused you seem to be on the waitstaff side in everything except digging into your own pocket to tip a little better to the people with a good work ethic who brave the risk to provide you with a good dining experience. You think they should be paid more by the restaurant so as to not have to work harder to provide a good experience and earn a better tip. You know if that was the case your dinner would be way more expensive as costs are just passed along to the customer.
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I've been on the waitstaff side. Right here in Florida, years ago, and back north where I spent most of my life, in two different states. Restaurant owners of common variety restaurants (not 5-star, just normal places like Darrell's) will pay ONLY the minimum they're required to pay, as long as they know their employees are making up the difference between that and minimum wage in tips.
The more you tip your waiter, the lower that waiter's actual non-tipped wage will be. If the boss sees that you're earning $15-25 per hour in tips in a state with an $8.65/hour minimum wage, why should HE pay you at all? You're making more than the average office worker, you don't need his money. But he's required to give you something, so he'll give you the minimum he's required to give you by law. That minimum, in the state of Florida, is LESS than $8.65/hour.
In the USA, a tip is intended to be an addition, a bonus, on top of the actual pay rate. If you want your waiter to actually and TRULY get paid more, you'll tip according to standard, because that's what his boss is basing the waiter's actual hourly wage on. "Standard" is not "what all the rich pretentious people you talk to who want to show off how generous they are claims they tip"
The standard is:
20% for over and above, stellar, amazing, impressive service, so good that you give them that 20% and tell the manager how wonderful they are.
18% for over and above, excellent, but not especially amazing or outstanding. Just really good solid service that you'd expect from the place you're in.
15% for "she did exactly what she's being paid to do, nothing more or less."
10% for "nothing impressive, I got my food, she gave me my check, filled my water glass, and said thank you at the end - could've been a robot but I'm tipping her because she's a person and not a robot."
Anything less than that, you don't tip at all, and you tell the manager.