[Carl in Tampa]

Originally Posted by biker1

The point is they are guaranteed at least the minimum wage regardless of whether they receive any tips at all.

Wow. A royal $5.23 an hour.

Notice that they are assumed to receive tips or $3.02 an hour, whether they do or not. (This is because it is known that some people tip in cash, which the server might not report to management.)

The employer is required to pay $5.23 an hour, not the Florida minimum wage of $8.25 an hour.

A person who is stingy with tips should get cold comfort from the fact that the server would get $5.23 an hour anyway.

[ColdNoMore]

I use 20% as a baseline,...then look for reasons to increase.

Very seldom do I decrease and even when I do...never below 15%.

I can afford it and gain no pleasure, as some people I've seen and known, in saving a couple of dollars...at the expense of those not as fortunate.

An EX friend made the mistake of sliding money back to me at the table and saying..."you tipped too much."

I also leave $3-$4 a night for hotel housekeeping.

[biker1]

My post was in response to the post regarding servers making minimum wage. You miss the point and you are wrong with your conclusion. Servers are guaranteed to get the minimum wage ($8.25/hour, not $5.23/hour) regardless of the tips they receive. Go back and read the law. They can certainly make more and that is entirely up to them and the choices they make. The employer is required to make up the difference if their tips don't cover the difference. There is no attempt on my part to state anything other than the facts. If you want to introduce some sort of morality issue into the discussion then please start another thread. I am not really interested in such discussions since what people make is mostly a result of their choices.

Originally Posted by Carl in Tampa

Wow. A royal $5.23 an hour.

Notice that they are assumed to receive tips or $3.02 an hour, whether they do or not. (This is because it is known that some people tip in cash, which the server might not report to management.)

The employer is required to pay $5.23 an hour, not the Florida minimum wage of $8.25 an hour.

A person who is stingy with tips should get cold comfort from the fact that the server would get $5.23 an hour anyway.

[Carl in Tampa]

Originally Posted by biker1

My post was in response to the post regarding servers making minimum wage. You miss the point and you are wrong with your conclusion. Servers are guaranteed to get the minimum wage ($8.25/hour, not $5.23/hour) regardless of the tips they receive. Go back and read the law. They can certainly make more and that is entirely up to them and the choices they make. The employer is required to make up the difference if their tips don't cover the difference. There is no attempt on my part to state anything other than the facts. If you want to introduce some sort of morality issue into the discussion then please start another thread. I am not really interested in such discussions since what people make is mostly a result of their choices.

Yes. A closer look tells me that tipped servers get at least the Florida Minimum Wage of $8.25 an hour. When I am wrong, I acknowledge it. That's still pathetic compensation.

On your second point, I didn't introduce "morality" into the discussion. Several previous posters have already touched upon tipping people even for poor service as a matter of compassion for the less fortunate.

Decades ago I began overtipping older female food servers in honor of the fact that my mother did not have to work at such laborious duties in her "Golden Years."

As Shakespeare said, Compassion cannot be forced. You have it or you don't. "It is twice blest;
It blesseth him that gives and him that takes:
‘T is mightiest in the mightiest; it becomes
The throned monarch better than his crown: ......
It is enthronèd in the hearts of kings,
It is an attribute to God himself;" --- (The Merchant of Venice)

[biker1]

You had used the word "stingy" in your previous response to describe tipping habits. Also, you used the word "pathetic" in this response to describe compensation. To me, that sounds like you are making moral arguments. People, by and large, receive compensation according to the revenue (and the margins on that revenue) they bring into a business coupled with the supply and demand for their skill sets (at least in the private sector). While I tip pretty well, I neither concern myself with nor make judgement calls on what others tip and I really have very little impact on what servers make (regardless of how much I tip).

Originally Posted by Carl in Tampa

Yes. A closer look tells me that tipped servers get at least the Florida Minimum Wage of $8.25 an hour. When I am wrong, I acknowledge it. That's still pathetic compensation.

On your second point, I didn't introduce "morality" into the discussion. Several previous posters have already touched upon tipping people even for poor service as a matter of compassion for the less fortunate.

Decades ago I began overtipping older female food servers in honor of the fact that my mother did not have to work at such laborious duties in her "Golden Years."

As Shakespeare said, Compassion cannot be forced. You have it or you don't. "It is twice blest;
It blesseth him that gives and him that takes:
‘T is mightiest in the mightiest; it becomes
The throned monarch better than his crown: ......
It is enthronèd in the hearts of kings,
It is an attribute to God himself;" --- (The Merchant of Venice)

[tomwed]

Village Airport Van
Do you tip the driver? How much? per bag? per trip?
When airfare was really cheap about a month ago I flew home from veges for $57, no luggage but a computer bag [Frontier]. That's not much more then Village Airport Van.

[Chi-Town]

The tipping scene in the movie Reservoir Dogs is a classic. Here's an excerpt:

Film. Reservoir Dogs
Role. Mr. Pink
Actor. Steve Buscemi

Uh uh, I don’t tip. No, I don’t believe in it. … Don’t give me that, if she don’t make enough money she can quit. … I don’t tip because society says I have to. All right, I mean I’ll tip if someone really deserves a tipping, if they really put forth the effort, I’ll give them something extra, but I mean this tipping automatically, it’s for the birds. I mean as far as I’m concerned they’re just doing their job.



Sent from my VS995 using Tapatalk

[ColdNoMore]

Here's an article on perspectives...from the server's side.

Harassment and Tipping in Restaurants: Your Stories - The New York Times

As we combed through the responses, we were struck by the sheer number of readers who had their own harrowing stories of mistreatment while working as servers or bartenders. Just like the scores of workers we interviewed for the article, many described the pressure to tolerate bad behavior in order to earn tips.

“You numb yourself because dealing with inappropriate behavior from customers is just part of the job — that’s the way it feels, at least.”

[graciegirl]

Since we're quoting;

"What goes around comes around."

"Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."

[CFrance]

Originally Posted by graciegirl

Since we're quoting;

"What comes around goes around."

"Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."

This.

And I applaud anyone who wants to, or must, deal with the public in his or her job.

[DonH57]

Originally Posted by CFrance

This.

And I applaud anyone who wants to, or must, deal with the public in his or her job.

[npwalters]

Originally Posted by Carl in Tampa

I have a different view, based in part on having eaten in some of the finest and most expensive restaurants in New Orleans' French Quarter, and in Cajun BBQ shacks out in the Bayous.

In the restaurants in the Quarter, you have real silverware and crystal on white tablecloths with subdued lighting and candles on the tables. You are attended by multiple service staff attending to everything from keeping your water glass filled to using an electrostatic comb to clean up the flakes of French Bread that fall on the tablecloth when you break the bread. The service staff is impeccably attired, varying according to their duties, and they speak softly and politely. There is a quite, peaceful ambiance.

The meal comes in courses, which are spaced out to provide a comfortable pace for eating, and you are never rushed into ending one course to begin the next. This encourages relaxed conversation among the diners and a general feeling of contentment. By the time you finish your after dinner coffee or drink, you may find that two hours have passed.

In contrast, at the Cajun BBQ shack you are seated at large wooden outdoor-style picnic tables, your order is taken, and the entire order comes to your table at once. You tend to eat quickly, and if you linger too long, your server will start clearing away your plates, bring your check, and stand at your elbow waiting for you to pay. You are expected to finish up in 30 to 40 minutes.

NOW, if you occupy a table at the expensive restaurant for an extended period of time, you are depriving the server(s) of an opportunity to get another diner at that table, and another tip. How terribly thoughtless of you!

The solution is not to "gobble and get" as you would in the Cajun shack, but rather to pay a larger tip for the extended use of the table. Think of it as a fee that you are paying for the additional amenities that enhance the ambiance of the dinner.

Well you have made quite a few assumptions here including about me. You don't know me and if I am thoughtless or not.

[npwalters]

So let's say I go into the Waffle House. I order a breakfast that comes to $7.50. The server takes the order, fills my coffee cup 2 or 3 times, brings the meal, etc. If I tip 15% it is only $1.12 and she worked harder than the server in the upscale restaurant that served the $50 dollar meal and drink who gets $7.50.

THAT is why the custom is flawed.

BTW, the ambience of the restaurant (décor, tables, etc)should influence the cost of the meal - not the amount paid for service in my opinion. I personally wish we used the European model and just pay the servers a decent wage and include it in the cost of the meal.

[asianthree]

Our granddaughter works at sonic to pay for car insurance and gas. She is on drive through every Saturday, from 5p to 10p. While I know her hourly wage is very low, she averages $50 to $60 a night in tips. She loves her job, thinks her customers are special, and always has that winning smile.

[ColdNoMore]

Originally Posted by asianthree

Our granddaughter works at sonic to pay for car insurance and gas. She is on drive through every Saturday, from 5p to 10p. While I know her hourly wage is very low, she averages $50 to $60 a night in tips. She loves her job, thinks her customers are special, and always has that winning smile.