Warren Sapp stiffs waitress on tip

[EDGECRUSHER]

Can someone explain why bartending/waitressing is pretty much the only profession that doesn't meet the minimum wage? I think it's stupid that we have to tip. I normally always give 20% but feel it's just stupid.

Because the restaurant is passing on the cost of labor to you in exchange for lower food prices. If they had to pay a higher salary, then the food costs would also go up. If you thought that shitty TGIFriday's burger was a ripoff at $9.99, wait until it's $15.

Despite it being my old profession, I have a very reasonable attitude towards tipping. I know how hard I worked, so if the service is terrible due to the server being on their phone or just not caring, leave a shitty tip. I once tried to get a waitress fired when I went out with my waitress girlfriend because that's how bad she was.

You just have to be careful if you come back because most servers ARE young or disgruntled and the food is made behind closed doors. Not saying a bad tip justifies that, just saying it's never a good idea to anger someone who serves you food that is out of your line of vision the majority of the time.

Best bet is to just not go back like someone else said.

[Spider-Dan]

Because the restaurant is passing on the cost of labor to you in exchange for lower food prices. If they had to pay a higher salary, then the food costs would also go up. If you thought that shitty TGIFriday's burger was a ripoff at $9.99, wait until it's $15.

It's already $12 with the tip.

If you ask me, I'd rather see:

- prices go up
- wages go up (and taxes paid on those wages, by employer and employee)
- tips go away

[fyo]

This got me thinking about how tipping varies greatly from country to country. I've traveled a lot, as I know many on this board have, and it can get a bit confusing at times if you're used to adding 20% (which is what I usually leave, although level of service affects it greatly).

A quick google turned up this site with an overview of customs in various countries: http://culinarytravel.about.com/od/planningculinarytravel/a/Tipping_Guide_Worldwide.htm

It seems like Asia is a veritable minefield when it comes to tipping (as it is with many other things). I particularly like the text for Japan: There is no tipping in Japan. Period. It's considered rude.

[Brian Fein]

To that point, when the wife and I were travelling in Paris a few years ago, we really had to google how much to tip.  I felt weird leaving a few coins on the table and walking away...

[MyGodWearsAHoodie]

It's already $12 with the tip.

If you ask me, I'd rather see:

- prices go up
- wages go up (and taxes paid on those wages, by employer and employee)
- tips go away

I would not oppose that....

But....

Personally, my level of tip varies greatly with the level of service I receive. 

If waitstaff was paid a flat dollar per hour rate, the wait staff wouldn't have much of an incentive to provide outstanding service.  Bust my ass and be super friendly get paid $10 an hour , be lazy and rude make $10 an hour ..... leads to the the same level of service you get at the registry at motor vehicles.  On the other bust my ass and be super friendly get paid $15/hr vs. be lazy and rude and make $3/hr provides a great incentive to bust my ass and be super friendly. 

I see the main problem with the current system is that too many people tip crappy service or give a a crappy tip despite outstanding service which defeats the point of a tip.   

[Dave Gray]

I see the main problem with the current system is that too many people tip crappy service or give a a crappy tip despite outstanding service which defeats the point of a tip.  

Perhaps, but that's the world we live in.  Right or wrong, tipping is expected to be between 15-20% and wages are paid accordingly.

And the same could be said for any job.  I get paid to do my job.  If I do it well today, I don't get paid more than if I do it poorly tomorrow.  Over time, it catches up with you.  Why should service be any different?

[Brian Fein]

Last week my wife and I went out for dinner to a fairly nice place.  The bill was $87.  The server was excellent and I tipped her $20.  It was about 24% tip.

Meanwhile, for a little over an hour of work, that server made $20 (not including her $3 or $4 wage) JUST OFF OUR TABLE.  She probably had 4-6 tables at that time.  Its possible she could be making $80-100 an hour at her job just for being friendly.

A bad server would have gotten $10-$12 tip, maybe.

Not a bad deal, if you ask me.

[Sunstroke]

If waitstaff was paid a flat dollar per hour rate, the wait staff wouldn't have much of an incentive to provide outstanding service.  Bust my ass and be super friendly get paid $10 an hour , be lazy and rude make $10 an hour ..... leads to the the same level of service you get at the registry at motor vehicles.  On the other bust my ass and be super friendly get paid $15/hr vs. be lazy and rude and make $3/hr provides a great incentive to bust my ass and be super friendly. 

Or:

Bust your ass and be super friendly, get to keep your job.
Be lazy and rude, lose your job.

Motivation comes in many forms...

[MyGodWearsAHoodie]

Or:

Bust your ass and be super friendly, get to keep your job.
Be lazy and rude, lose your job.

Motivation comes in many forms...

Does that work at the grocery store?  McDonalds? 

Fact is tipped service employees tend to do a better job and make more money than other low end service jobs.

This isn't just the case in restaurants.   Ever have trouble finding a sales person in a store where the employees get paid by the hour?  How about at store where they are paid commission?  Typically there is a huge difference.   

[Sunstroke]

I've never worked a tip-based job, so no firsthand experience there, but I have worked a sales job where I was commission for a while before moving to straight salary, and I don't think my attitude or motivation really changed much at all.

To me, it doesn't really matter whether waiters get tips incorporated into the price of their food or not. It's going to get paid one way or the other.

[Dave Gray]

Its possible she could be making $80-100 an hour at her job just for being friendly.

Not really, though, because you don't just get to work the dinner shift with big checks.  You have to work a bunch of down hours where you bring in very little pay, in order to get to work those prime shifts in the evenings. 

It averages out.

[Brian Fein]

I think the statement Hoodie is making is valid.  If you know that you can directly affect the amount of money you're going to get, you push for it, if you're driven.  If you're a lazy bum who likes to smoke cigarettes behind the dumpster for 4 hours of your 6 hour shift, your pay will reflect that.

On the other hand, if the tip is pre-determined, the lazy bum and the go-getter get the same amount, why not also be a lazy bum?  Go-getters become extinct.

[Dave Gray]

On the other hand, if the tip is pre-determined, the lazy bum and the go-getter get the same amount, why not also be a lazy bum?  Go-getters become extinct.

I just think that it's only that way if the system is designed that way.  If a company puts a stress on customer service, trains and rewards accordingly, you'll have that.

Take a look at Disney.  Everyone is super nice and helpful, because it's stressed from the top down.  You're not tipping anyone for it.  It's a service mentality.

I argue that your way would work if that's how the US worked, but it didn't.  We're not really built where tips fluctuate based on service.  It's generally expected and base pay reflects that.

[Brian Fein]

^^ as long as you're in an industry where your supervisors can easily observe you.  I don't think the restaurant industry is predisposed where a restaurant manager can accurately determine the performance of each server and reward accordingly.  What's the next step for a server?

To use your example of Disney, the reward can be a management position or a higher paying job.  Publix is the same way.  I shop at Publix because the employees there are better and provide better service.  Whereas, at Walmart, employees are just counting minutes until they get to leave that hell hole and barely speak to you.

[Spider-Dan]

I think the statement Hoodie is making is valid.  If you know that you can directly affect the amount of money you're going to get, you push for it, if you're driven.  If you're a lazy bum who likes to smoke cigarettes behind the dumpster for 4 hours of your 6 hour shift, your pay will reflect that.

On the other hand, if the tip is pre-determined, the lazy bum and the go-getter get the same amount, why not also be a lazy bum?  Go-getters become extinct.

This contradicts the experience of almost every job that is not based on sales or service to the public.

People who are good at their job (any job) may not get paid more on a daily or weekly basis by being good, but they can use that performance to move up to better jobs that pay more.