<p>Why don’t restaurants just pay them a real salary, cover it by increasing the cost of the food, and don’t “require” tips at all? If you want servers to be motivated to provide good service, the restaurant owners could give commissions based on the bill. Make it more like Nordstroms…</p>
<p>Xiggi,</p>
<p>I think there has been a shift to tipping higher in the past few decades. I know at our restaurant, an 18% tip is automatically added for parties of 8 or more. I expect anywhere from 15-20% though and think any of it’s good. I’m just saying 20% makes me happy no matter what and I’m still okay with 15%. I think where the discrepancy comes from is that a lot of people do regularly tip 20% or at least 18%, so when a server gets 15% it’s lackluster. Anything below that usually miffs employees a little. Obviously 10% an under when it’s undue is an insult.</p>
<p>When I go out to eat I always tip at least 20% unless service is crappy. But that’s because I never order anything that expensive and can’t purchase alcohol so I tip what I would if I did get something else. Some people who come in and get just a pizza and water will do the same, and I appreciate it every time since the next couple who got sat somewhere else may have ordered a bottle and steaks.</p>
<p>If we took away tipping, does anyone think quality of service would fall?</p>
<p>Erhswimming, while I don’t know if there has been a shift to tipping higher in the past few decades, what I do know is that it is obvious where the theories supporting the shifts from 15% to 20% originated! </p>
<p>As far as your restaurant adding a 18% on the bill of a large party, I think that it is fair as long as it is FULLY described to the patrons before they order. The percentage for service is not as relevant as the practice of disclosing it. </p>
<p>Again, I really hope that some standards and regulations would be implemented. I have no doubt that numerous servers are screwed by owners, especially in ethnic-themed restaurants. The system of relying mostly on tips is not necessarily bad, but I firmly believe it should be much more regulated than it is today. </p>
<p>Reasonable charges for service should be added to all sit-down restaurants, but be made part of the ticket. Unfortunately, I doubt that this would change the expectation of larger tips, because it has become so ingrained in the minds of people who work in the industry.</p>
<p>Perhaps, this thread could veer in another direction as well. Here it is:</p>
<p>What services should be tipped and by how much? </p>
<p>Maids at hotels?
Bellboys?
Barbers?
Pizza delivery? </p>
<p>The list goes on …</p>
<p>There are a few lists floating around:</p>
<p>RESTAURANTS/BARS
Waiter/waitress: 15% of bill (excl. tax) for adequate service; 20% for very good service; no less than 10% for poor service
Headwaiter/captain: often gets a cut of table server’s tip; so tip your server extra to reward captain, or tip captain separately
Sommelier, or wine steward: 15% of cost of the bottle
Bartender: 15% to 20% of the tab, with a minimum of 50 cents per soft drink, $1 per alcoholic drink
Coatroom attendant: $1 per coat
Parking valet or garage attendant: $2 to bring your car to you
Washroom attendant: 50 cents to $1 </p>
<p>*DAILY LIFE **
Taxi driver: Varies depending on locality. Assume 15% will be enough; an extra $1 to $2 for help with bags.
Food delivery person: 10% of the bill (excl. tax), at least $1 for bills up to $10. Should tip 15%-20% for a difficult delivery.
Grocery loader: Check with store policy if tips are accepted. If so, $1 for bringing bags to car; $1.50 to $3 if you have more than 3 bags.
Barber: 15% to 20%, minimum $1, for a haircut. For other services (shampoo, shave or manicure) tip $1 to $2 to service provider.
Hairdresser: 15% to 20%. (It is now acceptable to tip owner, unless he or she says otherwise.)
Shampoo person: $2
Manicurist: 15%
Spa service (e.g., massage): 15% to 20%. If service is provided by owner, no tip.
Staff at coffee/food retailers with tip jars: No tip required. It’s completely optional.
Handyman: No tip
Gas attendant: No tip </p>
<p>**TRAVEL **
Skycap at airport: $1 per bag if you check-in curbside; $2 per bag if skycap takes bags to check-in counter.
Hotel doorman: $1 per bag for help with luggage; $1 per person for hailing a cab
Hotel bellhop: $1 per bag for bringing luggage to your room (but a $2 minimum if you have just one bag)
Hotel housekeeper: $2 to $5 per night
Hotel concierge: $5 for getting you tickets or reservations ($10-plus if they’re hard to get). No tip required when you ask for directions.
Cruise: Varies. Ask cruise line about customary gratuities.</p>
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<p>Sounds very discriminatory to me.</p>
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<p>Actually according to Birdeye’s other posts on other threads, he/she is a recent college grad, age 22 who is trying to figure out what to do next…move home to help family (the story he has posted is that they really could use his help) is one option.</p>
<p>There is no mention that Birdeye has gotten a job at all yet. </p>
<p>Sounds like a ■■■■■ to me.</p>
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<p>So her tips should be untaxed? </p>
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<p>I could make 3 billion a year and would never give a cent to anybody who didn’t directly work for it. Nobody is entitled to anything is life, you need to work for it. No excuses. </p>
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<p>If they have already started a family then, they need to be responsible for that family. If they didn’t have a well paying job and were irresponsible and had kids, then they need to deal with the consequences of their actions. </p>
<p>A Car, Car insurance, Clothes, health insurance, video games and even college are all extra in life. None of these are necessities. If you want them then you need to be able to afford them, but in no way are they needed. </p>
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<p>No, when you compare the starting salaries of those in the trades vs a college grad, the wages resemble directly what the market needs. Cousin just became a Electrician in Yonkers, NY and his starting pay at 18 is 73K a year. Trade jobs are up in wages due to, too many people going to college. No no chasing doesn’t guarantee catching, but it does when you chase the right thing. You can chase all you want, there is no guarantee you will get a job. You can be the best top hat builder in the world, doesnt matter if nobody is buying top hats.</p>
<p>^^What has that to do with waiting on tables?</p>
<p>The fact is that restaurant owners pay their staff wages well below the minimum wage because they expect customers to tip. Even when the service is lousy, service HAS BEEN rendered. </p>
<p>It’s people like you who make me think that a mandatory flat service charge of 15% on top of minimum wage for all waiters is a good thing.</p>
<p>The one thing I don’t like about going to restaurants with friends is that when the waitress sees us she immediately assumes that since we are kids we don’t tip well. Most of my friends have jobs and on the rare occasion the waiter/waitress actually give us decent service because of our age, we often tip up to 40%.</p>
<p>Sort of related, I work as a bag boy at a grocery store. While we wear “no tipping” badges, I still get about $10 week in tips. Its nice.</p>
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<p>As we know, Europe has learned to live with mandatory flat service charges, and has overcome the problem that bad waiters and great ones essentialy earned the same tips. </p>
<p>The issue of minimum wages for tipped workers (which was incidentally not raised this week along the increases to 7.25) is one that the restaurant owners should deal with. Of course, the minimum wages might have been frozen since 1991 at 2.13 because most everyone end up earning more than the minimum wages. </p>
<p>Fwiw, today’s paper included a story that gives a good idea why this issue remains unsolved. The waitress who complained about the mimimum wages not be raised also complained that she used to make about $150 in tips during a six-hours shift but that it dropped with the crisis. Obviously, there is a world of difference between $2.13 and about $25 per hour. </p>
<p>It seems that what waiters want is a combination of minimum wages PLUS tips that are superior to 15% of the checks. I think that we should all support eradicating those insulting 2.13 per hour but at the same time killing any idea that waiting tables deserves much more than a mandatory 15% before taxes. </p>
<p>Make it mandatory, simple, transparent … and fully taxable!</p>
<p>Today I was chatting with my friend about this. She too worked as a waitress to support her kids after being unceremoniously dumped by her H of 12 years (thus no current “marketable” skills). I was reminded of the Thanksgiving shift I had to work at a coffee shop in LA. In tips I earned $28 + a $5 food stamp from an elderly couple. I assume they ponied up the cash for the supper and couldn’t spare anymore. I looked in my “keepsake” box, and lo and behold, I still have it. I’m glad. This afternoon I wrote an explanation on the back of it. That would have been Thanksgiving 1977.</p>
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<p>What about hardworking individuals who are working to support parents or younger siblings who can’t work for whatever reason? What if their parents are both disabled?</p>
<p>I agree with 2Black69. My friends often leave more than a 20% tip because we usually order the less expensive items on the menu (not because we’re cheap, we just don’t have expensive tastes in food) and will often sit around talking for awhile after.</p>
<p>Birdeye: “I could make 3 billion a year and would never give a cent to anybody who didn’t directly work for it.” Then DON’T eat at a restaurant, because unless you’re at a buffet, the waitstaff IS working. I’ve never seen food magically fly on plates from the kitchen to my table. Right or wrong, the system in this country is that waitstaff is primarily paid via tips. You don’t like it, don’t eat at restaurants.</p>
<p>Birdeye = Ebenezer Scrooge.</p>
<p>One word of warning for you: Karma.</p>
<p>I absolutely love tip jars. It’s a great way to get rid of my change! (Excluding quarters, of course. I am, after all, a dorm student. :D)</p>
<p>I always leave some tip at restaurants, unless the service is really terrible. For instance. Last September, a good friend of mine and I went to eat at a local restaurant. We happened to get there during shift change. Got our food, proceeded to eat. We waited over an hour and a half and received no assistance…we finally asked someone who was not our “new” waiter and he brought us the check. Left no tip on the table, but did slip the kind soul who brought us our check a few dollars on the way out.</p>
<p>Even then, we felt guilty leaving no tip, and left a note on the back of the receipt explaining why.</p>
<p>HGFM: if you are ready to leave in a restaurant and don’t have your check, stand up and put on your coat, get our purse, etc. The server will be right over with your check. Since you sort of got lost during the shift change, you should have flagged any server and asked for the manager.</p>
<p>I have found that standing up trick gets action. No restaurant wants a “walk-out.”</p>
<p>Thank you for the tip! I’ll remember that if it happens again :)</p>
<p>This isn’t a terribly worthwhile thread if there is only one brutally honest naysayer and everyone else is stumbling over themselves to say they always tip or always tip 20% or can’t believe others don’t tip at least 15%.</p>
<p>AKA :reporting bias" in scientific study parlance</p>
<p>I saw someone on TV ask a waiter whether she would get the tip if it was put on the charge card. She said no. How common is this practice of stiffing the wait staff if tips are not cash?</p>
<p>^^What I understand from reading CC threads is that when you put the tip on the charge card, the waitstaff gets slightly less than if you had given the same amount using cash. Perhaps that’s because you’re tipping a percentage of the pre-tax cost of the meal, or perhaps it’s part of a service fee on credit cards, not sure which.</p>
<p>When I waited tables, at the end of the evening we’d go to the cashier to get our tips as indicated by the VISA’s. There is a possibility of being cheated by the cashier that way. </p>
<p>Now I only tip cash, which I hand to the server so another customer doesn’t scoop it up.</p>
<p>^^That is common at a lot of restaurants but not all. No matter if I get tips in cash or charge, I end up with the same at the end of the night because the computer automatically takes some of it out to give to hostesses and bussers for their tipshare depending on your sales.</p>
<p>When we use a credit card for a meal out…we give CASH to the waiter for a tip.</p>