Servers in Europe make much less than servers in the USA. The tipping is much less, and the hourly pay is more, but not much more. Typical pay <$1700 euros/month (plus tips).

I think you certainly could do that in the USA, but I don't think it will happen. The likely effect would be that meal prices would rise (but by less than the full 15%), and server incomes would go down.

A little tangent: How did we get to the point of thinking that everyone deserves a “living wage” for any job they have? Many restaurant jobs, particularly of the fast food variety, have traditionally been part-time and stepping stones into the world of work for young people, or retirees looking for something to do or add some spending money to their pockets.

Some who’ve decided to make hospitality their career will work their way up into higher end establishments where, as mentioned, the total compensation is pretty good. Even if one stays with a fast food company, they can work into a store manager or possibly a franchise owner. The key words are “work their way up”.

If anyone isnt satisfied with their station in life, they need to educate themselves, either through traditional schooling or even better, through an apprenticeship program to learn a trade. But that’s hard work! It’s much easier to whine about someone else’s privilege, protest, and demand $15-20 an hour to make a cup of coffee or flip a burger.

It all reminds me of the lyrics sung by the great Mavis Staples:

🎼“If you're walking 'round thinking that the world owes you something ‘cause you're here
You goin' out the world backwards like you did when you first come here, yeah.”🎼

TIPS are portrayed as a reward for good service (hence the acronym), and Servers as service employees.

But in reality Servers are sales clerks and TIPS are buyer paid commissions. They perform sales functions. They give you menus, they help you make selections. they take your order, they deliver the product to you. The upsell whenever possible. Todays special is Prime Rib. Can I interest you in desert?

The customer has the option of tipping whatever they want, but in practice, almost everyone tips between 15-20%. So the server is simply getting 15% of everything they sell. If the service is really bad, they may get low or zero, but that doesn't happen often. The fact that the buyer rather than the seller pays that doesn't alter the picture much, although it makes some customers a bit annoyed by the custom.

Thought of in this way, Servers compensation structure is not much different than many other customer facing jobs.

Some posters on this website have admitted that they tip 20 percent even if they get bad service. That is one reason that there are a lot of mediocre restaurants.

20 percent for bad service?? 😂😂

Do I have a choice? 🙃🫠😉

You are being exploited. That feeling is real.
May you have a nice day as well! 🙂

I think good servers could make that in the villages if they could get enough hours. But restaurants limit them to far fewer than 40 hours per week to avoid paying benefits. They are also quick to cut them on slow days.

Tips are generally figured on percentage of the bill, regardless of the value of the dollar. Although, the fact that the "custom" has been increased by whoknows wit just that thought, value of a dollar, as an argument to try and justify 5% to 10% to 12% to 15% to 18% to 20% to 25% and up. Where and when does the nonsense end?

Why? Which authority made that ruling? Sounds like consumer exploitation and a tax dodge to me. Probably worker exploitation as well.

What a wide brush you are painting with, Picasso.

Was greater truth ever spoken!

Sounds like industrial exploitation of workers.
Can you say "union"?

I disagree with some of this. First off, prices are already 20% higher if you figure in the tip. Plus, the customer, has to deal with the emotional side of the oftipping. Oh, the poor single mom with 4 kids that all need braces. Oh, the guilt of not funding their futures.
As for the servers, the don't need try to be your new BFF. Just be polite and professional. No tip expected because you get it without fawning over every table. Easier for everyone at tax time, too.[[/LIST]

Just returned from lunch at Mallory. My guess is a few posters also had stopped.The place was packed with skeleton staff. Our waitress had 7 tables of 4-6 patrons. Before our glasses were half empty drinks were refilled, our food was delivered in 18 minutes (kudos to kitchen staff). Next table of 4 golfers ordered the wing special $6 each plus drink $2.99 for soda. Total with tax $10.69. Each left $11 cash. It’s just sad. Our waitress picked up the cash, continued to smile and thank us for stopping.

noticed most responses indicate that tips should be based on total of bill. so if one person orders and the bill is $100.00 they should tip 20%. but if two people order and their bill totals $100.00 - they should tip 20% also? seems like the wait staff did more for the party of two than the party of one. so why is the tipping suggested based on the total bill rather than the service given?

You wouldn't. The pre-tax amount is clearly listed on the bill. It's just as easy to calculate 20% of the pre-tax amount as the post-tax amount.

Agree 100%. Either all income should be subject to tax, or no income should be subject to tax. Special carve-outs are ridiculous.

----------------------

As for the fantasy of tip culture in the US ever going away, there are close to 750,000 restaurants in the country. Unless you can get all of the owners to agree to prohibit tips, it's never gonna happen.

That is disgusting behavior. If you can afford to pay for championship golf, you should be able to afford a decent tip.

Consider two evenings out for a couple.
Evening #1 is at Texas Roadhouse with a total bill of $80. The service was very good and the tip is $16.
Evening #2 is at Stirrups in Ocala with a total bill of $250. The service was very good and the tip is $50.
I chose these two restaurants as we have eaten at both.
As the amount of work at each location to serve us was the same, why would the tips be so different? Also, do you tip $8 on a $40 bottle of wine and $16 on a $80 bottle of wine?
It makes no sense. Why not come up with a standard tip amount without considering the amount spent? Instead, consider the amount of work involved. If you experience truly superb service, then leave more.
Please don’t answer by saying if you can afford to eat at an expensive restaurant you can afford the larger tip.

I still tip the same way... (and I'd be hard pressed to find that any servers, who tend to be young and healthy DIED due to Covid...

Thinking that over tipping is actually harmful to the employees sounds like a cop out reason NOT to tip...

Handing me a bag of food is just a tad less difficult than being a server in a sit down restaurant...

From the Google Machine:

While the etymology of "tip" as an acronym for "to insure prompt service" is a popular belief, it's actually a myth. The term "tip" is thought to have originated from the phrase "To Insure Prompt Service," but it's more likely related to the Old English word meaning "to give". In modern usage, a tip is a gratuity, a gift of money given for good service.

Because there is a very large difference in the service you receive...

Taking 1-2 minutes to take your order and hand you a bag of food a McDonalds is a far cry from taking care of a table of four for 60-90 minutes...

I haven't seen that much of a disparity. And the convenience of being "inside the bubble" comes with a price...

Yes, they benefit so much that this happens:

17% fail in the first year, according to UC Berkeley. About 80% of restaurants fail within the first five years.

You're assuming they work 5 days a week and that Monday/Tuesday nights are just as busy as Friday/Saturday...

:bigbow::bigbow::bigbow:

I haven't seen many admitting this...

Nobody said working is easy. Go into the back room and watch the cook, dishwasher , busboy. They likely work just as hard as waitstaff. They likely work at minimum wage. Are you going to be generous to them and tip them also?

Also, I sense that waitstaff job is becoming easier. Yes, they take the order, but often the food is delivered by a runner who has no idea how you wanted delivery, extra butter, plate, drink refreshment, etc. Many take the order on electronic devices, so they have no interaction with the kitchen staff
Bills are electronic based upon their input. Taxes automatically added as are tips which may or may not be on the bill including taxes. Often you are asked to
do your own payment on table machines. This allows waitstaff to take on more customers.

I can't remember ever knowing the personal life situation of any my servers... There's ZERO emotion involved in calculating the tip I leave, unless the server makes me angry by doing a crappy job...

Or, base the tip on $50 for each patron... Same difference...

But most customers won't figure in the tip, they'll just look at the price on the menu. A $16 burger looks high but reasonable and a $3 tip at the end is typical. A $19 burger looks expensive even though no tip will be added. Prices are already 20% higher if you figure in the tip but customers don't figure in the tip.

My guess is that good servers choose busy nights and take on as many tables as possible to get as many tips as possible. Without tipping there would be no incentive to do either of those: whether a server has ten tables or two, $17/hour for 6 hours works out the same. Good servers won't want to lose out on the possibility for good nights.

The commission on a Jaguar will be much higher than the commission on a Toyota even though the Toyota salesperson will have to work harder to make the sale. Maybe life ain't fair but it's understandable.

Want a new system, maybe $17/hour plus $20/table? Makes sense to me. Let me know when you open your restaurant and I'll give it a try.

The back staff typically receive a portion of the wait staff's tips...

Tips are optional? Not in the court of public opinion! Some folks think that if you choose not to tip it's because your a cheapskate or worse.
If the restaurant pays the employee, then you don't have to. Just pay the bill and go. No emotional blackmail, no customer abuse, no dodging their responsibility for the owners, no shell game with how the business or employees report their taxes. Better for everyone imho. Well, maybe not for the business owner.

True. No body likes tipping except the ones that receive them and the businesses that use it to scam the customers into helping pay their employees, lowering their costs.

Sad is right! They each had $.31 in change coming that they could have donated to muscular dystrophy or some other charity.
Just incase you're wondering, I'm only half joking. Waitress has a job and is obviously getting by. Not everyone is as well off.

It might sound like that...
if you ignored my post where I stated I'd BEEN a server and
if you ignored my post where I stated I DO tip, 15% for adequate service, 18% for good service, and 20% for outstanding service, plus I let the manager know it was outstanding. And no tip for BAD service, with a heads up to the manager.

My average tip is 18% because most service around here is good, better than average, but not outstanding. So far in the 6+ years I've lived here, I've only once left no tip and alerted the manager. That makes it a solid half-dozen times in my entire life, when I've not tipped a "tipped employee."

Servers at Darrell's aren't making $250 per day in tips. The waitress at IHOP isn't making $250 per day in tips. The waiter at Ay! Jalisco who only works the lunch shift isn't making $250 per day in tips. In fact, most servers who work the lunch shift don't make $250 per day in tips, and most of them don't work more than 5 hours in a shift, or more than 4 days in a week. Most servers won't work more than 5 or 6 hours in a shift, for more than 4 days a week.

Agree with your reply. As for "tip culture", who says the restaurants are incharge or your participation. Screw them. They have been passing their wage responsibilities on to us for ages. We have been scammed. Customers just don't want to push back. How high does the tip percentage have to get before people get fed up and waitstaffers lose their jobs because we've had enough.