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Your philosophy on tipping?

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If I made about 40 dollars an hour and I got a bad tip once in a while I sure would not complain so much about things. Be thankful you make what you do, especially considering you get benefits. A family member of mine was a full-time worker at one of Wisconsin's 10-Best Restaurants (according to some magazine or some crap) and they sure didn't get any benefits! You are lucky. You get good money. You do what you like. You get benefits.

Why complain? Shut up and smile already ;)
 
^^ I do agree with you.. I try not to complain.. I go to work being happy with what I made.. But I was again trying to show everyone my point of view from the other side of the table;)

randycaver... sorry but that post was not for you...
 
As for the law school issue, frostyangel is making more money as a server than I did in 4 years as a legal secretary, then assistant, most likely. I was slaving like crazy in a corporate law firm for $11.50 an hour for most of my legal career, and that was after a couple raises and promotions. I make more than that now, but I'm not in the legal profession at the present time.

However- as randycaver said, a legal job is absolutely a lot more secure a foot in the door. I'm pretty sure my 4 years of experience will be a lot more impressive to law school admissions officers should I decide to go to law school than if I had done what most of my friends had done and waited tables, all things being equal. My law office was probably a lot more understanding about exams and whatnot than the average restaurant or bar would be.
 
randycaver said:
So, please explain why you are even in this thread complaining about bad tippers? Jesus fucking christ - you have no reason to complain if you are making that much. Obviously bad tippers are the minority, and not the majority, so, give me a break! Also, all of your benefits? Yes, you really have no place in this thread if you are so blessed in your position.

This makes me want to rethink how much I tip now.. I think I should tip less - especially if you're making TRIPLE what I make! LOL!

But actually yes, surgery and care does to go the less fortunate, in state hospitals. The care isn't as superior, but that DOES happen.
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"I would love to know the state you live in because in Philadelphia(where I am from originally) they turned me away for health care(I have crohns disease and although not critical its extremly painful... no insurance... make too much for welfare... they just turned me away and this was a state hospital)


I am in this thread cause regardless of what I make and let me be quite clear that what I make isnt the norm of most servers..... I bust my ass quite hard literally running around when other servers may be walking... therefore I am able to get a few extra tables and make a bit more bucks.....

Most servers don't make nearly per hour in tips than what I make. This per hour fluctuates so much as well.... On a slow Monday lunch shift I could walk out of there with $20 bucks for the day.......... on a Saturday night when its busier I could make more.... Also many servers shifts are extremly short some shifts are like 2-3 hours long. So even if you make some good tips you arent there that long t make much more money... SOme people can go in and get three tables then get "cut" now if they gave good service to the tables and they get stiffed how do you think they are going to feel?

This will probably be the third time I have stated that I am not complaining about MY job. I am simply complaining about shitty tippers in general when good service is given... regardless if its me getting the shitty tip or a co-worker....

In all honesty It just gets under my skin when I get a shitty tip when I get good service to me its an insult . When most people leave 18-20% as a tip that generally becoms the "norm" for good service and when I get a ten percent tip when I busted my ass for the table I just start to wonder do these people understand we don't get a paycheck? Do they realize that the "norm" is 15-20% Maybe if they did they would leave more the next time.....

Honestly though if it got under my skin to the extreme I wouldve quit by now(Been at the current one since I moved up here over a year and a half ago) So I am thankful for my job........

It's not like servers can say something to the table when they get stiffed/shitty tip though cause then the table thinks they themselves get insulted.....

I do remember having this job The Rainforest Cafe in Philly and we actually had this cool manager who would actually go up to tables in a professional manner and ask the table why the server got the unusually low tip.... In the year and a half I was there not one patron said "cause thats what they tip cause they cant afford to leave more.... It was allways "oh I did not know that 15-20 percent was the norm or oh we allways thought you where supposed to leave a dollar per person..." Bet you after the littel talk with the manager they leave a different tip now......

As many have said you have to put up with all types of crap in any job and I do love my job with all its benefits....

Regardless of what I make in comparrison to other people shouldnt we allways strive to do better? In other jobs we are given raises/ bonsuses as a means to show we are doing a good job...... In the service industry with servers not gettings raises ever strive to get better tips it is our way to get a "raise" ... When we bust our asses harder and harder each day only to get stiffed/shitty tip... It hurts regardless of what you make off of your other tables......

As I said I cant see anyone in the service industry who would pick a table who tips shitty/stiffs and working as hard as they can for them as opposed to a table who is going to give you a good tip on how well you perform. and Let me make that clear on "how well the server performs" I agree with web a server having an attitude they should just get a tip for just waiting on you needs to have another look at the job description..... But a server who does there job well and efficiently should never get stiffed because someone simply cant afford to tip them.

Sorry for the length of this one folks!
 
I think what everyone should consider here is that at some places in the US, your wage is teeny tiny, and your employer is counting on you to use tips to make a living wage. $2/hr is not unheard of for a server to make, with tips bringing their wage up to a decent hourly rate.

Also, I have a lot of respect for ANYONE with a job in this job market - there are NO jobs here in Toledo, and I'm thankful for the shitty one I have.

Many people are faced with this - college grads, skilled labor, everyone - so people get jobs where they can.
 
^^I don't think anyone is doubting that servers are paid a very low wage. We are only questioning the assertion that one should leave a tip regardless of the quality of service.
 
Point taken shannabanana - that is true.

I guess I'm just a little flipped out that this thread seemed to be derailed, and has kind of become a "if you're stupid enough to be a server, you deserve crappy wages" kind of thread :(

That's more what I'm seeing here. Maybe I'm reading into it though. And on that note....

*bows out of thread*
 
^ I dont think that at all - perhaps you're reading too much into it..

imho, you have no reason to complain for getting what is expected out of that type of position.. it's based on tips - and they all know that going into it, so they really have no one else to blame if they encounter shitty tippers.

so in a sense, yes they do deserve what they get, because it is exactly that type of position.

oh, and i'm certainly not saying - nor would i say- that you must be a moron to work as a server or in food service (b/c i'd do it now, if i found a job doing so) just that you know what the job entails going into it.
 
You have a point that this thread is getting a bit off topic mostly by myself.... To get it back on topic....

I tend to overtip because I am a server....

20-30% if good service
50% - If I eat out at my job(after all I am helping out my co-workers and half my bill gets discounted so I dont mind leaving the extra bucks)

Usually at bars etc etc I leave a dollar per drink if the drink is around $4.00....

Originally being from Philly where the drinks costs more I don't mind leaving a buck.. the bartenders do appreciate it....

Now servers are thier own worst critics when getting waited on we are usually bothered by things most people arent.....
What servers loose tips for in my eyes are when you complain about something and they just say they are sorry... I hardly complain and when I do it usually means I would like to see a manager(these are issues usually the server has no control over... poorly/improperly cooked food etc. etc.

Servers also lose tips when they don't know the menu or drinks...

In almost every single job I have worked we had tests to take on menu items/drinks etc etc.. and I took those tests seriously... There are a few people in our job who have honestly said they didnt have time to study cause of school etc etc... But this is a job like any other and not working hard by choosing to learn is only going to hurt you in the long run.......

A server who doesnt know the menu loses a percentage of the tip... Saying I don't know wont cut it........
 
^That is too true :) Whenever I have a problem, and I tell the server, if she doesn't get the manager in on it or at least offer some sort of price break - bye bye tip. I'm often at a bar, and we have favorite bartenders, and they remember us, so we "remember" them. They always get tipped well, and I always get top shelf liquor for either totally FREE, or charged for the well drink price. How cool is that??!! :)

my b/f used to be a server - and so from him i know what to watch for ;) it's always totally impressive when servers know everything on the menu without a pause. i'm sure its often b/c they eat there too :D but still, if i don't know what something is, i want to hear from them if it's good or not!
 
Originally posted by randycaver
^That is too true :) Whenever I have a problem, and I tell the server, if she doesn't get the manager in on it or at least offer some sort of price break - bye bye tip.
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In many high stress service industry jobs the relationship between management and the staff are strained at best.

In these times of economic instability a secure job in this industry may be difficult to acquire and retain.

Because of these reasons contacting your manager about certain (or any) customer complaints may be tantamount to putting your head on the chopping block. I have certainly worked in restaurants where the managers tracked mistakes and customer complaints of any kind and were happy implicate dismissal if they continued. Attempting to provide a "price break" without managerial consent in most restaurants is certainly reason for dismissal as most companies consider it stealing.

I have outlined these possibilities in order to show the fallibility of callous and underexamined actions and opinions by the customer.

Why should someones uninformed and underdeveloped attitude (which they will never be held accountable for) be allowed to potentially ruin someones health and livelihood?
 
Originally posted by randycaver


So, I go to nice places- and the servers there are always awesome - and they ALWAYS get a great tip. They go above and beyond what they're supposed to do - and that's why they're working at those places, because they are so good.
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YUP. You are 100% right. (Please note sarcastic tone of post.)
All of us "good" servers automatically graduate to fine dining within a year. At those restaurants we utilize our "awesome" talents in order to make us 200$ a night for waiting on an average of 3 tables at a time. This fact is in contrast to "slummy" servers who all work at denny's who wait on an average of 9 tables at a time (a good percentage of these tip poorly since it's a "not nice" place so they obviously deserve it) and make 40$ a night.

But who cares about the crappy, unskilled servers? Lets talk about us gifted ones....... We just pulled ourselves up by our bootstraps into the lap of luxury and adoration. I will admit it was all skill. It had nothing to do with location, connections, personal desire, transportation, personal integrity, availability of jobs, or any of that other inherently meaningless crap.

I couldn't even imagine that a mother of 2 working at denny's waiting on over 2 1/2 times times the amount of tables (as well as a comparable amount of expanded opening, running, and closing sidework) would make half of what i make. DO NOT get it twisted. All that time spent not giving you "awesome" service WAS NOT spent waiting on her other tables or responsibilities, she was just trying to show you that she did not deserve the tip that servers at "nice places" acquire from you all the time.
 
lmfao

Why should someones uninformed and underdeveloped attitude (which they will never be held accountable for) be allowed to potentially ruin someones health and livelihood?
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Really, what do you mean by this? Are you suggesting that anybody trying to contact the manager over something is trying to ruin somebody's livelihood? I only contact the manager if the server doesn't do it first - and mind you - when I speak here I'm referring to one establishment only - which is an establishment I frequent quite often, and they all know me and my b/f there. We never have problems, and no one has ever gotten into trouble as a result of us. I know that a problem with the food is not their problem, but if they don't at least offer to have it taken back to be redone - when it's completely WRONG - or talk to the manager about it - then I will go speak to the manager. I always feel bad about wanting to contact the manager - but if the waitress/bartender whoever doesn't do it, then I will, if the error is THAT BAD. I don't think that's unreasonable.

But who cares about the crappy, unskilled servers? Lets talk about us gifted ones....... We just pulled ourselves up by our bootstraps into the lap of luxury and adoration. I will admit it was all skill. It had nothing to do with location, connections, personal desire, transportation, personal integrity, availability of jobs, or any of that other inherently meaningless crap.

I couldn't even imagine that a mother of 2 working at denny's waiting on over 2 1/2 times times the amount of tables (as well as a comparable amount of expanded opening, running, and closing sidework) would make half of what i make. DO NOT get it twisted. All that time spent not giving you "awesome" service WAS NOT spent waiting on her other tables or responsibilities, she was just trying to show you that she did not deserve the tip that servers at "nice places" acquire from you all the time.
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From this, what exactly are you trying to say? I know - from research on my own part in interest in obtaining one of those jobs at the nicer establishments - that it is not some job that just anybody could get. They are professional servers who have done nothing but work at these places, and probably make a lot more money than I will in my job. If you don't believe it, who cares, I really don't have a reason to want you to believe it.

You sound so bitter, i can't fathom why you would react in such a way8(

But anyways, I find it so amusing since I've mentioned more than once that I tip 15-20% ALWAYS or MORE - unless the service is poor, and that would be anywhere, even if I went to a place like Denny's. So.. get your head
out of your ass - I have never said anywhere that I DONT TIP.

In fact, I just did some calculations and apparently I've been tipping 25%.. so, god, I really suck. I'm so inconsiderate 8)

Go ahead and make three posts to respond to my one!:p
 
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This is getting a tad out of hand...

I'll lay it down like this.



When you take a job as a waiter or waitress, you knowingly put a large portion of your wages in the hands of those who are going to be tipping you. By taking this risk, and being completely aware of it, you essentially give away any right to bitch about your job or how people tip. That is your job. If you don't like it, get a different job and stop your complaining.

A waiter complaining about the occasional bad tip is akin to a professional basketball player complaining that he is famous or a construction worker complaining that he gets sunburned at work during the summer. Get over it, it comes with the territory.

You guys sound like intelligent people. This is causing me to have problems understanding why you cannot understand the ways of restaurant employment. This matter is so basic it is not even funny. There is nothing left to debate. Some people tip great, some people tip poorly. In the end, it all comes very close to completely evening out. Even if it didn't, has it ever begun to cross your mind that some people you wait on do not like you or your service? Just because you say you bust your ass, and I'm sure you do, does not mean some people may not like your service. Some things come down to a matter of personal opinion. Maybe some people hold the opinion that they hate you as a server. Who knows?

Once again, you're a waiter. This is the story of your job. It always has been and it always will be. I will again suggest you get over it or get a new job.
 
Colonel Forbin said:
This is getting a tad out of hand...

I'll lay it down like this.



When you take a job as a waiter or waitress, you knowingly put a large portion of your wages in the hands of those who are going to be tipping you. By taking this risk, and being completely aware of it, you essentially give away any right to bitch about your job or how people tip. That is your job. If you don't like it, get a different job and stop your complaining.

A waiter complaining about the occasional bad tip is akin to a professional basketball player complaining that he is famous or a construction worker complaining that he gets sunburned at work during the summer. Get over it, it comes with the territory.

You guys sound like intelligent people. This is causing me to have problems understanding why you cannot understand the ways of restaurant employment. This matter is so basic it is not even funny. There is nothing left to debate. Some people tip great, some people tip poorly. In the end, it all comes very close to completely evening out. Even if it didn't, has it ever begun to cross your mind that some people you wait on do not like you or your service? Just because you say you bust your ass, and I'm sure you do, does not mean some people may not like your service. Some things come down to a matter of personal opinion. Maybe some people hold the opinion that they hate you as a server. Who knows?

Once again, you're a waiter. This is the story of your job. It always has been and it always will be. I will again suggest you get over it or get a new job.
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Bravo
 
MOS said:
I think what everyone should consider here is that at some places in the US, your wage is teeny tiny, and your employer is counting on you to use tips to make a living wage. $2/hr is not unheard of for a server to make, with tips bringing their wage up to a decent hourly rate.
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I'm from Australia too... just a general observation... $2 AN HOUR?

That's like... what, $4 an hour in Australia?

What a fucked up system. Sorry.

I really feel sorry for you hard-working people who have to rely on the fickle public in order to get a decent wage. How do you work out what your average salary is when you don't have an 'average' salary each week? :\ How do you cope with having a "bad day" when you know it could cost you nearly your whole day's wage? What a lot of pressure.

And even from a diner's point of view - how ridiculously annoying to have to mentally add on 15% to everything you buy.... I'm sure you guys are used to it but jeeez, I want to enjoy my meal, not calculate how much that plate of pasta is really going to cost, or how much the service is worth..... not to mention getting drunk and stuffing up money at the end of the night......

I tip sometimes if service has been *extraordinarily* good, but I don't feel guilty if I don't because I know staff at most places here are well looked after.

American hospitality staff should just get a decent wage from the outset. I don't understand why you don't. :(

ps. Does anyone else here find "server" a derogatory term, or am I taking it the wrong way? In Aus, we don't even call McDonald's employees "servers" - they're hospitality employees. :D
Most restaurants have "waiters" and "waitresses", even the cheap ones... and if you called any one of them a "server" you'd probably get a punch in the nose, or at the very least, a gob of spit in your meal ;)
 
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Just my .02.

If, in any career, someone is being paid for a job they aren't doing properly, in highly extenuating circumstances, that should be brought to the attention of their superior. This applies to all industry, not just service.

In the above cited reference, I declined to provide a grossly rude and inferior server with a gratuity, yet I brought the same to the attention of their superior so that the problem was recognized and had an opportunity to be corrected.

Everyone's a critic when it comes to time and money, and I am no exception. People are quick to criticize and slow to praise, and it ought to be different, but that's really just how it is- cross professions.

SLM- in most of the US, "server" is considered a more nonoffensive term than "waiter" or "waitress." Similarly, most US citizens would be happier hearing the term "flight attendant" than "steward(ess)." It is more important to be Politically Correct and Gender Neutral than anything nowadays, but that's another thread entirely- just wanted to answer your question as best I can. :) <3

As I said... just my .02. :)
 
Hmm..okay my first comment/question: Where do you guys live that you are getting paid around 2 dollars an hour? Minumum wage in California is $6.75 an hour. But isn't there a FEDERAL minumum wage as well? It says so on the employee information poster thing at my work anyway..it says it's like at least 5 something an hour, for all of the USA. So how can you guys be paid so little per hour? Anyone..?

Anyways..here's my two cents. I also am in the service industry (food service/bussing/some bartending).

When I go out to eat, I honestly don't really think of tipping in percentages. I don't even know how I would figure out percentages. I'm no good at math.

In almost all circumstances I leave a two dollar tip for the waitress. Most places I go out to eat are places like Sizzler, Carrows, Marie Callenders, Applebees, that sort of place. Our bill almost always falls between $20-30.
I leave a standard two dollar tip for a decent waitress. Even if things aren't perfect, I still usually leave it. If he/she goes out of their way and does a really good job, I might throw a few extra dollars in there (IF I have it to spare).
Sometimes when I go to bars I tip, sometimes I don't. I really don't usually have it to spare, as most drinks I order are $5-6. I usually just leave the change, anywhere from 75 cents to a quarter. Sometimes I tip a lot more than that, if I am not short on cash.

When I get a haircut I usually tip. Well, actually I only tip if the hairdresser did something SOMEWHAT resembling what I was asking for, which seems a hard feat for some. I got my hair highlighted the other day and the bill came to $65. I gave her $70. Whatever. I don't care what freakin percentage that was. $75 was all I had in my pocket and they wouldn't even tell me the PRICE beforehand. They just kept saying "Well it just depends". To me, $5 bucks is a good tip, so thats what I left.

When I am bartending, customers who I have been serving a few beers to usually leave $2-3. There have been a few customers who obviously were not hurting for money and have given me $15-20 in tips in one night. I feel almost a little embarressed and ashamed to take it. It's like, "What did I do to deserve this?" I almost always know they are only giving it to me because they think I am hot, which seems sorta gross, but I wouldn't complain about it either.
I am also a cashier (my primary job) and people put money in the tip jar a lot. The money is collected and then divided up at the end of the month between everyone at the restaurant, based upon the number of hours worked. So one person can have great service and make all the tips and then everyone gets them, even the people with the shitty attitudes. The managers take most of the money since they work the most hours. I usually only get $20 a month from the tip jar, even though sometimes I can gather as much as 10 bucks a day in there during my shift. It really isn't fair.

One last thought: One thing I REALLY can't STAND is certain types of establishments that REQUIRE you to tip. I once ate at a place that took it upon themselves to add in a hefty little tip to our bill. I was fuming. How fucking dare they assume I wanted to leave a tip. Needless to say I never went to that place again. How arrogant!
 
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