Has everyone noticed tips jars in stores where they should not be. I saw one at a gas station and one at a take out only place. It is getting a little out of hand don't you think?

Has everyone noticed tips jars in stores where they should not be. I saw one at a gas station and one at a take out only place. It is getting a little out of hand don't you think?
When I see a tip jar that I don't think is merited I simply don't leave anything in it. However, I don't normally mind them at take out places and pick-up counters because I don't believe the employees have any expectation of a sizable tip, just whatever people feel they can spare. I usually just leave ten to fifty cents. When I worked at a bakery in high school which had a take-out counter, we placed a tip jar out and divided it up equally every week. We almost never got bills and we didn't expect them. It was just an outlet for someone who wanted to show their thanks with their change.

You live (acording to your info) in a country where money is more important than anything else. Everything is measured against its dollar cost. It is no trouble finding someone who can name the richest man in the US, but can name our Nobel laureates?

And you wonder why tip jars are in gas stations and convenience stores and take-out joints???

<peeve>

Starbucks (can substitute many corporate names here): if a corporation that charges >$3 USD for a cup of "fancy" coffee cannot afford to pay its employees a living wage that doesn't depend on tips, maybe those employees need to be looking for another job- not a pay supplement from me.

I went to a Starbucks in Albertsons the other day and the barrista was so charming I wanted to leave her something. I asked where the tip jar was and she said she is an employee of Albertsons and not allowed to take tips. Thought I might get my coffee there in the future.

Several years ago I moved to California for a while. When I arrived, I was amazed at the number of tip jars everywhere. When I was having some rennovations done by a small company, I asked the owner (a native of the area) if it was expected for me to tip her workers. Her response (and I paraphrase) was "No. I pay them for the work they're doing. The only people who should get tips are restaurant waiters and your hairdresser."

I think she hit the nail on the head.

Also, if you buy a Starbucks, Jamba, or similar card, there's no way to leave a tip on the card and there's no cash in your hand to drop into the waiting tip jar. Dilemma avoided.

[OPINION]


You live (acording to your info) in a country where money is more important than anything else. Everything is measured against its dollar cost. <snip>


[OPINION]



Not to be confused with fact.

In Paia HI the nice-n-noisy but yummy fish restaurant on the corner by the traffic light has a HUGE tip jar by the young tattooed girl who takes your order and later yells out your first name so you can come to the counter to pick up your order.

She has lately added a small "glancing/pointing" gesture towards this HUGE jar. Disgusting.

MisterNice

Has everyone noticed tips jars in stores where they should not be. I saw one at a gas station and one at a take out only place. It is getting a little out of hand don't you think?

I simply ignore them.

Tipping is a cultural phenomenon and is different in different cultures. In Japan, they see even our policy tipping of waiters and waitresses (15-20%) as offensive, and in Europe 15% is way too much.

As cultures change, so does tipping policy. If you've grown up with a culture where tip jars were infrequent as I did, then I understand why the recent proliferation seems inappropriate. But the disappearance of reasonable paying manufacturing and other similar jobs replaced with low paying service jobs has resulted in many people requiring these jobs as their livelihood. Previously, such service jobs were staffed by teenagers, students, and part-time workers, and the economics of those companies was based on low salaries that were acceptable to such workers.

Now with so many people requiring low paying service jobs as their primary income, it is not surprising that tip jars have proliferated. In truth, the only difference between tipping in unexpected vs expected places is the length of time such practice has been in place, not really where they are.

All of the above is not meant to disagree with the response of a number of people posted above. I myself am startled to find tip jars everywhere. But I do think it is a sign of our changing economic structure and the increase in low paying service jobs. That is why recent economic reports showing an increase in the number of jobs and the number of employed is very misleading. Most of these jobs are not of sufficient income to provide a livable wage.

Sorry to have gotten side-tracked, but I do think it is more than just some service workers becoming greedy.

There was a thread in the AA forum where a security agent was soliciting tips at JFK :D

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=155954

Get a load of this one:

At my neighborhood grocery store, there is a tip jar next to the cash register.

Tipping is only "expected" in the US for sub-minimum-wage employees. Waiters and bartenders. That's it.

Some people tip barbers, some tip bellhops -- that's voluntary tipping, presumably when extraordinary assistance is provided.

Other types of tipping -- tip jars specifically -- are not traditional, and those few travelers who participate in this new tipping can ruin the whole service experience for the rest of us.

It irks me to see cutesy signs like "Tipping is not a city in China"-- if they must have a tip jar, let the jar speak for itself.

My sister was a waitress for a short time, and always always gives me a hard time about leaving an 18%ish tip. If a waitress is "nice" she'll leave like a 30-35% tip. On my card, of course. :rolleyes:

The DHS and the TSA should *BAN* tip jars. The terriorists could hide a bomb or WMD in them

MisterNice

Couldn't agree more - tip jars are out of hand. On a recent trip to Australia I enjoyed their policy of taxing more. Most people there just round up the bill - and the service was great. Although I knew tipping was not an accepted custom in Japan I felt I had to offer a tip the small woman who carried our very heavy bags to our room. She politely declined the offer and said it was her pleasure. Why can't it be like that everywhere?

Also the percentage for a tip is getting too large. In the past 15% for a waiter was normal - now it is 20%.

cejkwj

I do not feel bound by the 15%-20% rule if the service is below par. I have started seeing the tip jars in Dunkin Donuts. What is next McDonald's and BK and other fast food places.

I saw this one guy actually take money OUT of the tip jar at a Starbucks (he needed a quarter or something). The cashier was stunned and the guy just looked at her with this smile on his face, got his coffee and politely walked out.

If people actually put money in these jars, wonder who gets it? The cashier, the counter help, cooks? Can't imagine but it's becoming widespread at all sorts of strange places where I'd never thought of leaving a tip.

If people actually put money in these jars, wonder who gets it? The cashier, the counter help, cooks? Can't imagine but it's becoming widespread at all sorts of strange places where I'd never thought of leaving a tip.

As far as I know, it all depends on the location and thier policy -- at a pizza place I go to, they have a tip cup there and the cashier use to keep the money but now, no one gets the money and everyone gets free soda's that works there -- the tip money goes into the register to pay for these drinks. I would imagine each place has different policies...

I saw this one guy actually take money OUT of the tip jar at a Starbucks (he needed a quarter or something). The cashier was stunned and the guy just looked at her with this smile on his face, got his coffee and politely walked out.
Used to happen all the time to me, it's very rude!

Starbuck's tipping jars are getting WAY out of hand. One barista actually asked me if I wanted to put the change of a $3.30 drink in the tip jar when I gave 5 bucks.

James Smith

I've also noticed at little take-away places if you pay by credit card there is a place for a tip on the receipt so you feel like a jerk putting $0. I think it's getting out of control. But on the other side of the coin, I know of a guy who works in a restaurant/ with a take-out. The waiters have to take turns manning the take-out, and they always know their tips are going to be way less the day they get assigned to the take-out. I'm not sure the answer--pay all waiters etc. a reasonable wage and get rid of the whole tip system??

Tip jars are useful because you can toss your pennies in there if you like. But I have run into varying reactions to my occasional attempts to get a penny out of the tip jar. Sometimes they say go ahead, other times they seem to get offended. I don't get the offended bit, really... I suppose some places actually expect to get tips, which I find rather silly for a counter type place.

I ignore the tip jars, and think they're silly.

On the otherhand, think of it this way. Say you pay $2.85 at Dunkin Donuts driveup and give the cashier $3. then you drive off.

You can be sure that Dunkin Donuts wouldn't want people making the change in the register, and then sliding the 15 cents into their pockets. That's a formula for inconsistencies in the cash draw.

So they put the jar out, tell the clerks that everyone will share and that's what starts it. Once the cashiers get a part of a little pot, they want part of a bigger pot. Only human nature.

But I still don't tip. If I did, I'd need to tip the guy who offloads the supplies from the truck, and everyone else who had a hand in delivering me my morning coffee.

And speaking of morning coffee, our local Dunkin Donuts hasn't served coffee for a week, as our town has had an e-coli alert in the drinking water. I've had to get creative about coffee, and it's KILLLLLING MEEEEEEEeeee. (thank you.)
Rita

And speaking of morning coffee, our local Dunkin Donuts hasn't served coffee for a week, as our town has had an e-coli alert in the drinking water. I've had to get creative about coffee, and it's KILLLLLING MEEEEEEEeeee. (thank you.)
Rita

What are you doing? Making coffee with bottled water?

What are you doing? Making coffee with bottled water?

Driving to the next town to buy there. Pathetic.

This morning they announced the water was safe again. Safe like it was before the water ban, no doubt.

Yum.
Rita

I was at DFW last week at AA Terminal A and at the Fridays Kiosk (the little stand with bad sandwiches and drinks), had a cup with a dollar bill in it. Why would I tip someone for ringing up my transaction? The person had no other purpose than to collect money and make sure I don't walk away without paying - What kind of extraordinary service could he provide to warrant a tip?

Totally agree that tipping is becoming WAYYYY too "expected."

I have no problem at all providing tips for "excellent" service or for those who go above and beyond or who simply provide good "service with a smile" (the other day a waitress told us she forgot to put in our order so it'd be delayed by 15 mins.; she was really nice about it though and still got a tip of at least 20 percent). I do understand that people in the service industry often are underpaid and underappreciated so I do my best to thank people via tips and other means (giving Christmas presents to my letter carrier, writing nice notes and letters of commendation to corp HQ or the employee's boss when someone's been really nice, etc.).

But let this be MY CALL. Don't FORCE it on me. If a tip is no longer voluntary, what's the point? I really resent restaurants that add an "automatic tip." Really? How the hell is that a true "tip?" Why not just add the extra 15, 18, whatever percent to the menu price? I'd rather pay a couple bucks extra for a meal included in the COST of the meal when it's imposed on me than to charge me the amount anyway under the "illusion" of a tip. As for all those other bogus tip jars that are popping up as you all mention, I'd ignore them, too. What's next, me putting out a tip jar in my office here at a non-profit in a commercial building? :rolleyes: Hey, *I* do a good job, too! Feel free to PM me if any of you feel like giving money away just because someone does what they're expected to do. I'm going to Hawaii in a couple of weeks... your money will be well spent. :D

Why not just add the extra 15, 18, whatever percent to the menu price? I'd rather pay a couple bucks extra for a meal included in the COST of the meal when it's imposed on me than to charge me the amount anyway under the "illusion" of a tip. :D

One reason may be the sales taxes (sales taxes might get worse based on discussions this week). Let's say you go out for dinner for 4, and have a $200 tab (no alcohol). If the restaurant builds an additional 15% into the price to pay the waiters more, the total subject to sales tax (on the consumer) is $230; in a state with a 5% sales tax, the additional tax would be $1.50. There may be other costs which increase as salaries increase. If so, the restaurant may have less profit unless the waiter didn't get 100% of the bump. Over many meals and many waiters, the amounts can be significant. I've wondered and don't know whether most states require manditory tips to be included in the amount subject to sales tax.

Tips are definitely getting out of hand. We used a shuttle bus at a county fair a couple of weeks ago. The drivers had decorated coffee can tip jars attached to the dashboard with the message, "Tips are never required but always appreciated!" This was for a 5 minute ride on a school bus. :td:

I always felt uncomfortable about taking anything from the "leave a penny, take a penny" tray in many stores. After all, I never leave any!

Well, one day at a Subway Restaurant, I was one or two cents short, so, instead of breaking a $20 bill, I helped myself from the "leave a penny, take a penny tray."

Boy, was I mistaken. "That's our tip jar!" the cashier said. Needless to say, I stay away from such 'trays' now.

(...)But I have run into varying reactions to my occasional attempts to get a penny out of the tip jar. (...)

You mean, you take their tip money on purpose? I swear I did it by accident!

But let this be MY CALL. Don't FORCE it on me. If a tip is no longer voluntary, what's the point?Exactly. It hasn't happened to me very often, but I find it really annoying. I usually complain and state that it's MY decision how much to tip and not the waiter's or the establishment's.
BTW I've noticed that this tends to happen more often in places which are frequented by a lot of tourists. Seems that quite a lot of non-US tourists don't know how to tip appropriately.


Why not just add the extra 15, 18, whatever percent to the menu price? I'd rather pay a couple bucks extra for a meal included in the COST of the meal when it's imposed on me than to charge me the amount anyway under the "illusion" of a tip.If a restaurant regularly adds a tip, it should be mentioned on the menu, just like many places do for bigger parties (e.g. for 8 or more).
However I strongly prefer the US-style voluntary tipping to the all-included approach which is common in Europe. I'm not a penny-pincher when it comes to tipping, IF I receive good or excellent service; but if I get crappy service I like to have the option to reduce the tip accordingly. Voluntary tipping is an incentive for the waiter/waitress to provide better service IMHO.


As for all those other bogus tip jars that are popping up as you all mention, I'd ignore them, too.Same here, but once in a while they come in handy when my wallet is overflowing with pennies. ;)

andy

Seems that quite a lot of non-US tourists don't know how to tip appropriately.

My feeling is that the non-US tourists understand exactly how to tip appropriately. It's the US-tourists who have lost their bearings.

Tipping is for extraordinary service. No tipping is required for standard service. The rest of the world understands this perfectly.

The strange US exception for waiters and bartenders (where, owing to a sub-minimum wage exception, they receive commonly a 15% "tip") has morphed in the minds of some US tourists into a de facto rule for other services. Only with truly extraordinary, above-and-beyond service should the traveler consider a gratuity.

My feeling is that the non-US tourists understand exactly how to tip appropriately. It's the US-tourists who have lost their bearings.

Tipping is for extraordinary service. No tipping is required for standard service. The rest of the world understands this perfectly.

However, when the rest of the world visits the United States, US establishments do not understand this. When I visited the US for the first time and failed to add the 15% "mandatory tip" to bills for satisfactory service, I was on the receiving end of some surprising comments.

My favorite is the so-called "tipping guide" that some places have taken to printing at the bottom of your tab. You know the ones....at the bottom of your bill or credit card receipt is a little note letting you know what 15% of your bill is, and 20% and so on....

While this seems to go hand-in-hand with the restaurants that have a little card on the table (real classy joints!) regarding tipping for our foreign tourist friends (who are, as mentioned earlier in this thread, not used to our tipping culture), the things that REALLY bother me about these tipping guides are:

a) Most people are not idiots and can do the math themselves (I know...there are exceptions)

b) The calculations seem to start at 15% and go up only. I guess if you got crappy service you have to figure out your substandard tip yourself!

and my absolute favorite (drumrole please...)

c) They always seem to figure the amount based on the total tab AFTER taxes, which they know is NOT the custom. In places like NYC this can make a big difference.

My coffee at Starbucks is in the $5.00 range. I think that is real expensive for a cup of Joe, albeit a Fru Fru loaded cup of Joe. I agree with the posters that state that tips are generally for people making less than minimum wage. I think tip jars are a level higher than the people begging for work or food (but really want cash) on street corners.

My coffee at Starbucks is in the $5.00 range. I think that is real expensive for a cup of Joe, albeit a Fru Fru loaded cup of Joe. I agree with the posters that state that tips are generally for people making less than minimum wage. I think tip jars are a level higher than the people begging for work or food (but really want cash) on street corners.

That's why they are often called Fivebucks :)

The basic McDonald's order also seems to be about 5-bucks, but I don't see any tip jars there.

Earlier in this thread someone posted a link to a website with minimum wages for tipped employees by state. In California it is $6.75 per hour whether you are tipped or not. In some states it was as low as $2.35 and hour if you receive tips and about $5.25 in non-tipped jobs. Good grief!

What gives with that two-tiered thing? Apparently one should take your location into consideration before tipping? Yes, there is a cost-of-living differential, but does this make any sense? I see an real profit in the 50-States Tipping Guide (tm)which I might print and sell on the web for our European visitors who are already confused and appalled by our "system" :)

Stay tuned.

The employers need to pay their help. Only in the US has the public been duped into allowing sub-minimum wages and passing the burden of paying the employess to the general public. I don't understand why is is allowed to continue.

Tipping is for extraordinary service. No tipping is required for standard service. The rest of the world understands this perfectly.

Couldn't agree more! ^ ^

From Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary:
Main Entry: tip, Function: noun: a gift or a sum of money tendered for a service performed or anticipated: see GRATUITY

Main Entry: gra·tu·ity, Function: noun: something given voluntarily or beyond obligation usually for some service

Otherwise it's called wages/salary/rip-off!

What gives with that two-tiered thing? Apparently one should take your location into consideration before tipping? Yes, there is a cost-of-living differential, but does this make any sense? I see an real profit in the 50-States Tipping Guide (tm)which I might print and sell on the web for our European visitors who are already confused and appalled by our "system" :)

Stay tuned.

As a confused foreigner myself, may I ask a question? I understand that tipping in not in your culture a way to reward great service, but a way to provide a decent wage for the waiters.

However, what's the rationale linking the pay of the waiter with the bill the client have to pay? I mean, the amount of time spent by a waiter to serve a three course meal composed of cheap courses and a three course meal featuring caviar, lobsters and truffle is exactly the same. The time spent to poor a crappy wine in my glass, or a Petrus 1947 is exactly the same. Why ordering expensive food and wines should result in giving a better pay to the waiter? I am in no way limiting his ability to wait at other tables by ordering an extravagant meal, so it's really a bonus.

Well, as a response: the customer is supposed to receive a higher caliber of service in a fine (read, expensive) restaurant, hence the justification for 15% on the higher tab.

In terms of wine, you are not expected to tip 15% on expensive (>$100) wine. You should instead substitute a flat surcharge on bottles of wine. (I use $5 as a guide).

Couldn't agree more! ^ ^

From Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary:
Main Entry: tip, Function: noun: a gift or a sum of money tendered for a service performed or anticipated: see GRATUITY

Main Entry: gra·tu·ity, Function: noun: something given voluntarily or beyond obligation usually for some service

Otherwise it's called wages/salary/rip-off!

Actually the alternate definition that applies in this case:

a relatively small amount of money given for services rendered (as by a waiter)

Government mimimun wage laws and government tax reporting regulations all confirm that tipping a waiter is the basis of most of his compensation. Failing to tip a waiter (or other tipped position) is literally expecting the worker to serve you for free. IRS regulation impute tipped income to the waiter. The waiter may be literally paying (through taxes) to serve you.

We can certainly debate if the present system is fair or is the best way to handle it. There is no debating that the tip IS the wages/salary for the waiter.

I travel a lot for the last few years (last year 220+ nights in hotel) and tend to tip:
* waiters
* bellboy if they carry my bags (but I do not use bellboy for only carry-on)
* maid (on average about $1 a night but sometimes $5 on a 4 night stay)
* hairdressers
* taxi - I tend to round it up but usually get reimbursed for it
For hotel conceirge and front desk staff, I tend to do Belgium chocolates at Xmas or when I leave if they had been good to me.

I am now in a place where tipping is not expected normally but still tips occassionally when the service has been very good even though it is not the norm.

But I resent being required to tip and those people who still expect a 15+% tip even when the service has been lousy. I had a friend in the UK that actually called the manager at a restaurant in London to the table and got him to remove the service charge from the bill since the service has been terrible.

Just my 2 cents :D

However, when the rest of the world visits the United States, US establishments do not understand this. When I visited the US for the first time and failed to add the 15% "mandatory tip" to bills for satisfactory service, I was on the receiving end of some surprising comments.

If you recall the surprising comments, please post here. I have heard some whining from regular-pay employees when they are not given a gratuity by the customer -- unbelievable!

That's why they are often called Fivebucks :)

The basic McDonald's order also seems to be about 5-bucks, but I don't see any tip jars there.

Earlier in this thread someone posted a link to a website with minimum wages for tipped employees by state. In California it is $6.75 per hour whether you are tipped or not. In some states it was as low as $2.35 and hour if you receive tips and about $5.25 in non-tipped jobs. Good grief!

What gives with that two-tiered thing? Apparently one should take your location into consideration before tipping? Yes, there is a cost-of-living differential, but does this make any sense? I see an real profit in the 50-States Tipping Guide (tm)which I might print and sell on the web for our European visitors who are already confused and appalled by our "system" :)

Stay tuned.

Is this true? In California waiters make $6.75 an hour?

In that case I see no reason to tip at a restaurant at all. Non-tip dependent wage and no smoking section (part of the restaurant service IMHO) ==> no tip.

Usually I eat at In 'N Out Burger. :)

Most of you people are hilarious. Are you serious? I would love to see you all exist on $3.00 (or even $6.00) an hour. Republicans.

Most of you people are hilarious. Are you serious? I would love to see you all exist on $3.00 (or even $6.00) an hour. Republicans.

I'd love to see all these people making $6.00 an hour react to the amount of money I spent educating myself...

I believe I heard somewhere that Wal-Mart may be putting tip jars next to its check-out lanes. That would help the public who may be concerned about compensation being inadequate.

"I'd love to see all these people making $6.00 an hour react to the amount of money I spent educating myself..."

And what does that have to do with the issue? Or are you that self-centered?

Has everyone noticed tips jars in stores where they should not be. I saw one at a gas station and one at a take out only place. It is getting a little out of hand don't you think?

This is something of a pet peeve, right up there with companies trying to collect charitable contributions from customers rather than giving them themselves.

The jobs in question should be paid on salary. If you get to a situation where tips get significant, it WILL be noticed by the company, which will cut salaries, tell employees to live more off the tips, and then not pass on any of the savings to customers. Just ask skycaps.

Not only that, but as soon as one company starts doing it, others will say they have to follow suit "to be competitive."

Of course, what goes around comes around. People have to have money if they're going to buy your product. That's a big part of the reason the U.S. economy hasn't done so well in the past 5 years, and if you pull out the psychological support from home-price appreciation, it could get far worse.

Is this true? In California waiters make $6.75 an hour?

In that case I see no reason to tip at a restaurant at all. Non-tip dependent wage and no smoking section (part of the restaurant service IMHO) ==> no tip.

In research for the other tipping thread, I came across this BBS entry:

"California does not permit tip credit, so your compensation must equal at least your local minimum wage. In San Francisco Minimum wage just went up to about $9 with c.o.l.a."

If accurate, this means that in San Francisco, the base pay for waiters and bartenders is not a sub-minimum-wage, but is nearly 10 dollars/ hour. Can any current SF resident confirm this?

If true, this would remove the normal and customary reason to tip waiters and bartenders in San Francisco. It would be interesting to know how many people have adjusted their behavior accordingly.

I was chatting with a manager of my local Starbucks – in a non tourist part of Las Vegas. Their employee’s tips are $2.00 per hour. Granted my tall coffee is only $1.61 – I leave a buck or fifty cents every now and then in the tip jar.

The other day I was at a different Starbucks. I grabbed my drink, a paper, and a pastry. My total ended in .01 – did the guy grab a penny from the tip jar? No – instead, he just gave me .99 cents in change. Did he get a tip? Hell no.

This is a city with a large and very well off middle ‘upper’ class that thrives on tips. A bellman at one of the big properties on the Strip can easily exceed 100K per year. That probably explains the $2.00 per hour at my local Starbucks.

is now 8.73 per hour...and I have no doubt it has affected people's tip behavior....but look at our COL and you will understand that isn't as much as it sounds...

plus you pay taxes on EXPECTED tips - if you declare less than 15% tips on your tax return you will be charged for under reporting income.




In research for the other tipping thread, I came across this BBS entry:

"California does not permit tip credit, so your compensation must equal at least your local minimum wage. In San Francisco Minimum wage just went up to about $9 with c.o.l.a."

If accurate, this means that in San Francisco, the base pay for waiters and bartenders is not a sub-minimum-wage, but is nearly 10 dollars/ hour. Can any current SF resident confirm this?

If true, this would remove the normal and customary reason to tip waiters and bartenders in San Francisco. It would be interesting to know how many people have adjusted their behavior accordingly.

I believe I heard somewhere that Wal-Mart may be putting tip jars next to its check-out lanes. That would help the public who may be concerned about compensation being inadequate.

This is drifting a little off-topic, but I believe that the New York Times ran an article this past weekend about supermart discount store employees who do not get paid health insurance and so they work a limited week in order that they remain below the poverty level and thus qualify for taxpayer-financed health care, i.e., Medicare. I don't know how many employees such a situation represents however.

If I saw a tip jar at a place like that, I'd turn right around and walk out (in much the same way as I do not purchase products made in China, when discernible).

What's wrong with "Made in China?"

What's wrong with "Made in China?"

It's likely a product that was made by a grossly underpaid and possibly underage person working for a totalitarian government.

plus you pay taxes on EXPECTED tips - if you declare less than 15% tips on your tax return you will be charged for under reporting income.[/QUOTE]

From the IRS: "If you are a large food or beverage establishment (more than 10 employees on a typical day and food or beverages consumed on the premises), you are required to allocate tips if the total tips reported to you are less than 8% of gross sales."

Servers must report tips of 8% (or more) of gross sales, or their employer will come under the scrutiny of the IRS. In recent years the IRS has been trying to hit restaurants with more FICA and Medicare taxes which the restaurant (and worker) must pay on tip income. Many servers are not happy that they must now report almost 1/2 of their income. A friend that's a waitress says to always leaves the tip in cash, even if paying the bill with a credit card.

The employers need to pay their help. Only in the US has the public been duped into allowing sub-minimum wages and passing the burden of paying the employess to the general public. I don't understand why is is allowed to continue.


Exactly. What alot of people do not realize is that servers are not always paid minimum wage. I know some who are only paid $2.00/hr legally. They also have to pay taxes on at least 8% of their total sales so their paychecks are often $0.

What bugs me more then the tip jars, which I just ignore is the extra line on room service tickets. They are already charging an 18 percent service charge but you look like a jerk not adding more. I now make it a habit to ask if their is a service charge included so I don't end up looking like a cheapskate.

I have, at one time in my illustrious college career, been a waitress (for Red Lobster and for Tony Roma's).

We were paid $2.01/hour (min. wage at the time in Florida). We had to declare at least 8% tips on all food bills (including alcohol, but not taxes). Frequently our wages for two weeks came to less than $10, but we ended up with about $200-$300 in tips. We didn't have to tip out busboys or bartenders (which some servers do), so it wasn't too bad.

As for California, remember that they have a very high cost of living. My dad lives in SF, and makes about $110K a year -- if he lived in Gainesville, FL (where I live) that would be the equivalent of $45K. Decent, but certainly not great for about-to-retire salary. $6 an hour, even $9 an hour, won't go far in that area.

In Scandinavia (bringing this back to travel), I've been told it is rude to tip, as that brings the possibility of the wait staff wages being reduced to below a living wage.

I agree that it is silly for the customers to pay the waiters wage. However, when I WAS a waitress, I enjoyed the fact that, for once, I was getting paid for what I did. If I was kind and helpful, my tips reflected that. If I was surly and sour, they reflected that as well. In few areas do you get such a perfect match between attitude and pay.

The system is broken... do we trash it and start again? Or let it slide farther into the hole?

Tipping Jars should be ban! Just ignore them. If you really want to give out your loose change, just look for the jars that accept money for charity.

Tons of these stupid jars on the counter-tops at our local fast food joints. What the heck??

"No. I pay them for the work they're doing. The only people who should get tips are restaurant waiters and your hairdresser."

Actually, I get my hair cut at a salon that explicitly requests that you do *not* tip them. Makes me far more comfortable really. I pay a reasonable price to begin with and get a professional job done.

I treat it all as karma.... i've been blessed with supportive family and enough intellect to have a comfortable lifestyle. Though i don't open my wallet for every tip jar I see, begrudging an extra buck or some change here and there seems petty and i'm happy to share my good fortune with those who are working to take me places, make me comfortable, or otherwise serve me.

As for waitstaff, having waited tables and bartended my way through my own six-figure education, including working nights the first two years to augment my lowly initial professional compensation, i know that i personally worked very hard to make sure that people had a great time and experience when seated at my tables or bar. That said, I knew damn well that the cash i was able to earn at those service jobs beat nearly any other option i'd have had at that point... by working my way into top scale places I was making more, $30+/hour, working 3 nights a week than i was at my day job. To me, THAT was disgusting. My last summer waiting tables I upped it to 5 nights a week and saved up over 10 grand to pay off the balance of my student loans before switching professional jobs.

one other thought regarding the percentage based on sales (that is, a waiter getting 15-20% for selling higher priced items, etc.).... in some ways you have to think of it as a commission. The waiter is effectively a sales person for the restaurant and so it's similar to compensation for a typical sales role, only the customer is paying it (somewhat discretionarily). If it was added in advance and you didn't see it, they would likely still be compensated on this type of commission basis. My favorite trick was selling $40 lobsters; the restaurant would only stock 3 per night but i would often be able to sell all three to a table of businessmen on expense accounts having a pissing contest by telling them about the special "but there are only three left so you have to let me know right away if you want them and I'll run back and save them" - when i spotted the right table this ploy would work close to half the time. Ka ching, there goes my per head for the night (this was a place with average main courses in the low 20s).

Probably getting a little OT here, but if you really think about it, compensation is based tyically on just a couple of variables: you can be compensated for your time (no one wants this b/c it's finite), your knowledge/skill, taking the right risk, or perhaps your uniqueness/rareness (though this is somewhat a subset of knowledge/skill). I pay our head of sales 25% commission on the gross revenue he brings in. This is somewhat a compensation on skill/knowledge, but honestly he is replaceable so I see it more as a risk play... he's risking earning nothing. That said he will pull in a half million this year but i don't begrudge him a penny because he signed up and took the risk and made it happen. He is not curing diseases, contributing to world peace, or really any other macro societal contribution other than making the world go around. Nor am I. My value as a human does not increase because i have acquired the right knowledge or taken the right risks to be well compensated for what I do, so I find it difficult to make a value judgment about someone else 'deserving' a tip or not. I suppose this is where i circle back to karma and my general sense of feeling good by being able to share, in a very small way, my good fortune with those i come into contact with.

..that isnt spreading to the rest of the world.