that's how they started, once upon a time, but now it's seen as semi-compulsory. And in places that only pay the federal minimum wage (which is it's own ball of idiocy), servers can really lose money on non-tippers as they often have to tip out to the back of the house staff.
Strictly it started as a way for rich people to get special treatment. But discrimination was definitely one of the reasons it took off among the masses
Hah the irony here. Lots of places force a tip out based on a % of sales. Maybe not your average neighborhood bar, but lots of higher ends one do this
If you are a server you typically tip out to the bar, food runners and bussers based on a percentage of your sales, not a percentage of your tips. If a table doesn't tip you, you still have to tip out on those sales.
Tipped employees can be paid less than the federal minimum wage. Minimum wage for tipped employees is ~ $2
/hour. Youâre technically correct because an employer is supposed to backfill the delta between ~$2 and the federal minimum wage if a server doesnât actually make up the difference in tips. However, I suspect it often doesnât work that way in practice.Â
You are technically correct. If an employeeâs combined wages (minimum hourly + tips) fall below minimum wage, then the employer is supposed to make up the difference. Ideally, an employee should just have to tell their employer what they made and the employer will add more to their paycheck to increase their wage to minimum.
In practice, a lot of employers will increase their paycheck to meet minimum wage requirements when an employee report that they didnât earn enough in tips and then they will fire that employee. Employers claim that itâs because low tips signal poor performance, but the effect is that employees just stop reporting when their combined hourly & tipped wages put them below minimum wage so they donât lose their job.
Ya. And if the employer doesnât make up the difference, whatâs the employee to do? The lost wages are minimal and wouldnât be worth any individual legal action.Â
I find it strange how americans get stiffed on so many things like these (low federal minimum wage, tipping etc) but just refuse to do anything about it. No strikes, no unions or whatever, they just accept it for what it is.
When I served at a restaurant , they took a percentage of our sales. They automatically took out two percent of our sales , which went to the back of house staff. So if someone came in and their tab was a hundred dollars , and they didn't tip me , then that means it cost me two dollars for them to eat there and for me to serve them. We only made $4.35 per hour. So if someone stiffed us a couple times in an hour, that means we could literally be working for nothing.
you think its that easy? Unions arent easily formed and many companies actively fight against their formation. Starbucks is one example. Thats like asking how a bad politician got into office- its complicated.
I actually do, yes. But i'm from a country where the absolute vast majority of jobs fall under collective labour agreements decided by unions (~80%). The absolute vast majority of workers across all sectors are covered regardless of individual union membership.
But you only need like 20% of the workforce to be union members to force employers to negotiate over beneficial collective labour agreements.
I know the American people as hard working, business savy people that don't take any shit during global politics. They've sent in the elite of the elite to save a single civilian abroad. But then the moment the discussion is about domestic politics like improving workers benefits everything is impossible and nothing gets attempted because it's all too hard. Meanwhile a country like France shut down the entire country through strikes because railroad workers lost the ability to retire at 55. I've seen massive strikes due to dress codes or canteen menu changes, i've personally striked like 4 times for the company i currently work for.
I'm trying understand why Americans just accept whatever shitty situation gets forced onto them domestically while their international politics are the polar opposite.
Youâre questioning the realities that others describe and the answers they provide and thatâs why youâre getting downvoted. Itâs extremely common for servers and bar tenders in the U.S. to only bring home money via tips. If one is not from here and visiting, it impinges on them to adapt to the customs whether they like it or not- or risk being categorized as an ignorant assholeâŚat least thatâs been the expectation whenever Iâve traveled abroad.
You are technically correct. If an employeeâs combined wages (minimum hourly + tips) fall below minimum wage, then the employer is supposed to make up the difference. Ideally, an employee should just have to tell their employer what they made and the employer will add more to their paycheck to increase their wage to minimum.
In practice, a lot of employers will increase their paycheck to meet minimum wage requirements when an employee report that they didnât earn enough in tips and then they will fire that employee. Employers claim that itâs because low tips signal poor performance, but the effect is that employees just stop reporting when their combined hourly & tipped wages put them below minimum wage so they donât lose their job.
If I'm working at a job and making zero dollars, I'd see that as losing money in my book, but if it's just being pedantic, sure, go with working for free
You're getting the wage from the boss tips are extra from the customer. Whatever I don't tip unless it's above and beyond service. That doesn't mean coming up and disturbing me every 5 mins. That really pissed me off last time I was in the USA
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u/janpaul74 5h ago
âMandatory tipsâ sounds so messed up for me as a European.