Posted on 12/06/2005 12:33:26 PM PST by George14
It has recently been publicized that a 20 percent tip is now appropriate because servers are usually only guaranteed $2.13 an hour and the tips have to be split. Let me explain something. It is the customer's sole right to determine whether a tip is given, the amount and who will be the recipient of his tip. Such rights are not only guaranteed by our constitution they are clearly explained in the Code of Federal Regulations. Customers may tip any amount they choose. Instead of a higher tip being appropriate, what is now actually appropriate is for the public to start questioning why they are being expected to tip more.
While it has been widely publicized that tip splitting and lowered wages are both creating a need for higher tip percentages, what is not being publicized is an explanation of what these business practices actually are and why they create a need for the public to tip more. You see in both cases, such practices equate to employers being allowed to take part the tips away from the employee to whom the customer has presented a tip. You see, tip splitting is the business practice whereby employers take part of the tipped employee's tips and give them to workers whom the customer had every right and ability to tip but didn't. The $2.13 an hour business practice which has been publicized is actually called a tip credit. The tip credit also allows businesses to take or credit part of their employee's tips for themselves. In both cases the public's tips are being taken by businesses owners. The problem is not that customers should be tipping more the problem is that business owners should not be utilizing their employee's tips for the business's interests.
The truth is, business owners are using the customer's tips which undeniably and indisputably are not intended for the business owner for the business's own interests. Such business practices are being allowed by our government even though such business practices are an illegal dominion over the customer's property. To put it simply, businesses are being allowed to steal the money customers present as tips. Now, the public is being expected to tip more because the workers are not receiving the financial benefits of the tips they have been presented.
What is needed is not a higher tip percentage but some educating of the public of what is actually happening to their tip. Businesses have lobbied our federal government and I believe have probably even paid off many of our judges so they can steal the financial benefits of the tips our public is tipping workers in the service industry. The stories you read on how the public is being expected to tip more are actually stories about how our country is allowing businesses owners an ability to blatantly steal from their workers. If the real issue was resolved there would be no issue.
Employers should be prohibited from using their employee's tips to establish a lower minimum wage for their tipped workers. Customers are not tipping so the business can lower it's payroll expenses and thus benefit itself to the customer's tip. Customers are not tipping so the business owner can decide who should share in their tip. Both these business practices are fraud on the public for they are clearly the misappropriations of the public's property. Because our public has sat back and done nothing as business owners misappropriate the public's tips to their own interests, there now exists an undue pressure on the public to tip more to make up for such criminal acts.
The reason I believe our public has sat back and done nothing as business owners reap the financial benefits of the tips presented to their workers is because the media has also been paid off to avoid informing the public of what is actually happening to their tip when the courts ignore the constitutional rights of the customer and when our federal government so blatantly misappropriates the public's tips. The courts have ruled that employers may share the customer's tip among employees whom the customer had every right to tip but didn't. The federal government has allowed businesses to benefit themselves to the customer's tip through the tip credit without the consent of the customer. Such acts by our federal government and courts are not only unconstitutional but criminal. The media is covering up such crimes by intentionally avoiding the issue and keeping the truth from the public.
The tipped employees of this nation need some help from the public on these issues. The truth of what is happening to the customer's tip is being withheld from the public so that employers can continue to steal our tips while the public is left to foot the bill.
Well whoopy for Oregon. They don't let the employer take a tip credit but they still let the employer take tips away from the waiter so that they can be given to other workers. What's the difference? The argument of the Oregon Restaurant Assoiation is that they would like a tip credit so that they can pay their non-tipped workers higher wages. While the state of Oregon has fought off their efforts to institute a tip credit for business owners, Oregon is still allowing businesses to give their other workers raises by taking the waiter's tips through employer required tip outs. So now Oregon seems to think they can brag about not allowing employers to steal their employee's tips with a tip credit when they are openly allowing business owners an ability to steal their employee's tips with an allowance of employer required tip pooling. Both of these business practices are nothing more than stealing. If Oregon is going to brag about protecting it's workers then protect them, don't just protect them a little more than other states and pat yourself on the back.
My wife and I hardly ever eat at restaurants any more. The parking sucks, you don't know who has spit on your food, and you gotta wait forever for the check and then you have to find your car and do the trip home through lousy traffic. And we don't even have tolls in Seattle.
The REAL meal is where we go to the meat market and choose our steaks (or whatever)at substantially less money than the restaurant. Then we have serious fun producing the meal, which is often better than what the restaurant can offer. We get our wine at the liquor store or local wine store - at substantially less money than the restaurant. We set the table, put on candles, put a log on the fire and enjoy. When the meal is finished, we are in the privacy of our own home and all that that implies (nyuk, nyuk). And there is no drive home, no tipping, no parking and no other restaurant patrons talking around us. And, depending on the mood, we may not do the dishes until tomorrow.
On the other hand, sometimes we will order delivered chinese. But actually eating in a restaurant is just not our idea of a good time. It is merely a trendy (and expensive) thing to do. And if I need something fast, I eat an energy bar.
The argument that most people do not care who gets their tip is simply a lie geared at condoning the fact that businesses should be allowed to steal their employee's tips and deprive customers of their right to determine who should receive their tip. Even if some people don't care who gets their tip, the point is, people have a constitutional right to determine how their money is spent and whom their money will be spent on. Employer mandated tip pooling is a violation of our constitutional liberty to determine for ourselves how and who our money is spent on.
The so called "business practice" of employer required tip pooling is nothing more than stealing irredardless of whether some want to believe it is a business practice that has naturally developed over time. It is instead an unnatural, criminal and unconstitutional scam which has been allowed to exist and flourish through blatant corruption in our judicial system and both state and federal labor agencies.
Mark
I think's it's elitist and unAmerican.
Actually, tipping has historically been almost unheard of in Europe. If you've ever waited on a European tourist, it's very rare to get a tip.
What's so "unAmerican" about incentive based pay, which is what tipping actually is... Actually, it's competition and capitalism at its very best!
Mark
You are now the 73rd person to tell me this.
I never worked for a restaurant that did that! However, in every one I worked, they did take a percentage of tips that we made, pooled them, and gave it to both the busboys and bar tenders.
If any of it would have gone to the managers, all hell would have broken loose.
Mark
I hope you also let the manager know...
Mark
When I was a waiter, I had some "regulars" who always asked for me. We'd chat, and they were really friendly. When they'd come in, I'd immediately bring them their preferred drinks. And every now and then, I'd buy them a round. In fact, on their Anniversary, I took care of their bill altogether.
After we became friendly, I don't think that they ever left me a tip smaller than 25%. And on their Anniversary, their bill was in the neighborhood of $75.00, and I was left a $60 tip! The nicest thing that they ever did though, was when they came in with their (adult) kids, who bought them dinner. Their kids left me a 15% tip, and after they had left, came back later than evening and gave me an additional $10.
To put it bluntly, if you're working for tips, and you really bust your butt, giving the best service you can, you'll do well in most cases.
Mark
No, sorry I didn't think of that.
:-) Great story!
It is still 15% for ok service and more if really good and MUCH lower if really really bad.
I refuse to be blackmaled into this PC 20% increase level because someone thinks they are entitled "just because" rather than because the service is actually better.
Many european waiters LIKE americans because we usually tip even if the tip is included to reward extra good service.
A few years ago, Indiana had Dog & Suds popping up all over the state. I am sure other states did also. It was rumored that the tips were about all the servers made. I cannot see tipping anymore than a buck for a waitress bring me a hotdog and root beer, etc. Even then it still bugged me to have to tip a fast food place.
Dog & Suds went bankrupt just a short time after building all of the fast food restaurants.
I occasionally go to Sonic drive-ins, but normally go to a place where tipping is not the norm, McDonalds, etc.
I would go to Sonic more often, if tipping were not necessary. I think it has to hurt their business to some degree.
Several on this blog have argued that we should simply leave it up to capitalism to solve this obvious criminal behaivior in America, business owner's stealing their worker's tips. If business owners are actually stealing their employee's tips, some beleive that our capitalistic system will somehow solve this problem and make this tranparent thievery disapear.
It has been argued by several blogger's that restaurants who steal their worker's tips through employer required tip pooling and tip credits will eventually end up with no one willing to work for such a corrupt business and yet people are continuing to work under these conditions all across our nation. The stealing of employee's tips is not deminishing in any way even though many employees have quit. In fact, the stealing of employees tips is increasing across this nation dispite the fact that many employees have quit because of such blatant criminal acts.
Capitalism is not going to make this crime go away, for if businesses can steal and get away with it they will. As a result, those working under such conditions will either have to go without a job or put up with this blatant crime. People have to work. If business are breaking the law and getting away with it it isn't going to matter if a few employees quit. The stealing will not only continue, it will intensify when our government blatantly condones such crimes as legal business practices.
I tip 25% for good service, 15-20% for normal service, and a shiny new nickel for poor service.
I gotta disagree there. $20 for half is usually vastly superior to $10 for the whole thing. Nice to leave some things to the imagination than to see something that shoulda been left covered up!
Yep. On Christmas Eve, I comped a party of 4 regulars their $135 tab. They left a $100 bill on the table for a tip, all of which went to the staff.
Except that that doesn't make any sense. Tipping doesn't guarantee service for you at any given visit, or it would be done up-front and thus, couldn't be done on a % basis. Only if you frequent the same place over and over and tip well to a given server will you get any benefit.
The problem are the folks that tip 20% religiously for good service or bad, and the servers that expect it and demand it!
The problem I have with tip splitting is that while businesses insist that wiaters must share their tips with busboys and other staff, the truth is, the only reason businesses want them to share their tips with other workers is so the business won't have to pay these other workers higher wages. Many restaurants are trying to make their waiters feel guilty if they do not share their tips with other workers and yet the business owner himself has no intention of sharing his revenues with these workers unless he is forced by federal laws to pay them something. Business owners will pay their workers as little as possible in an effort to increase their own earnings but when waiters exibit the same capitalistic behavior they are selfish and unfair.
Why should a waiter be required to share her tips with other workers when customer's had every right and ability to give these other worker's tips? If it was the customer's intent that these workers whould also receive a tip then the customer should specify that his tip is not intended for the waiter and the waiter alone. The customer could write on the check that his tip was intended for the waiter and the busboy and write down how much each should receive. Customer who do not indicate that their tip is not intended for the waiter and the waiter alone have only themsleves to blame if the waiter claims the tip as her own. There is no law that anyone has to tip. This includes waiter and any other workers who receive tips. Just as waiters accept the fact that a customer does not have to tip them, business owners should have to accept the fact that workers who receive tips do not have give tips to other workers. If customer want these other workers to have tips they have every right and ability to give them a tip.
This is capitalism and if it is going to work, everyone must be allowed to enjoy the rewards of such a system. As it currently stands in America, those of us who work in the service industry and receive tips from the public must live in a communistic system where we are forced to share what has been given us while the rest of you are free to enjoy capitalism. I pledged allegiance to this country every day in grade school and I know that the rest of you pledged the same thing I did. Liberty and justice for all. Not liberty and justice for only those who do not receive tips. The tipped employees of this nation demand liberty and justice. You have pledged it now produce it.
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