To keep things safer, I will word my examples as those that 'my friend' told me .

On a good day when 'my friend' worked they would have sales in the $3000 - 4000 range (average 20 pax per seating, 4 seatings per day, $44 per cover) This wouldn't include tours or extra seatings during the busiest days.

At 80 covers per shift, 'my friend' 's sales would be 3,520 (+tax). 15% of this would be $528. With an average of 22 shifts per month, that would add up to over $11,000 per month. Add the wage of $14 that my friend got... and even though they only worked a few months of the year (the big money dried up after 4 months anyway) the amount of TAX FREE CASH that 'my friend' made was unbelievable.

During other periods this same friend worked at the chocolate buffet, where, with 12 tables, and unlimited coffee and deserts, the customer turnover was quick. At an average of $2 tip per table, this server would easily pull in $200 per shift in tips... not including the occasional $50 and $100 tip that came their way.

You get the idea.

Now imagine adding up all the restaurant checks on one night, in one major city in North America... and adding 15%. Do you realize how much we're talking about. Now multiply that by 365 and add all the cities together.

The bottom line is that there is NO WAY that even if the employer pays a fair wage that it would even come close to the insane amount of money that 15% of the combined average check would add up to.

So, suppose that by elliminating tipping, the employer overpays each server $3000 or $4000 per month and incorporates it into the cost ofthe meal. It still pales in comparison to the amount that we're giving now....$2 $5, $15 dollars at a time.

The difference in what you're paying now, and what you'd pay just passing on a reasonable wage is tremendous.

The tax scam is another story completely... and may be unique to my country.