Re: Tipping question

missy1 · ‎03-10-2010

@Nightowlz wrote:
@dex wrote:
@Nightowlz It might not be the best living wage but supposedly it isn't a career.My son makes almost 25 an hour and has a law degree.Young people are not paid as well as their parents in the corporate world at this time.My DH office hires a lot as contractors now so that they don't have to give benefits.my son says that he and his friends do cook outs at home to save money on entertainment.I think that is a healthier choice anyhow never mind saving the price of dining out.My point is that as the costs rise fewer people will be able to afford it.
@dex For a lot of people it is their Career. That's the problem. There are plenty of people out there without a college degree that have a family trying to make ends meet. You cannot make ends meet on that wage. I just don't think people realize all the people working not making enough money to sustain.
I would hope if your son has a law degree he would make more then $25 per hr. DH makes a lot more then that per hr & has no degree.

One can have a law degree but not have passed the bar exam. Could that be the reason?

willdob3 · ‎11-01-2010

@Sunnycorle wrote:
Waiters do not make minimum wage. Its much lower and the amount the resturant pays maybe covers tax. Waiters and waitresses live off of their tips. If you don't want to tip don't go out to resturants that require it socially.

In my book, if they want a good tip they need to work over & above to earn it. Not expect it regardless of the service they give because of how much they earn per hour. Tips are not based on hourly earnings or pity.

In my experience, most waitstaff do their best & do earn good tips.

happygolfcartrider · ‎05-10-2013

I don't think minimum wage applies to restaurants, it never has in the past. That is why servers depend on the tips. I would make sure they ARE being paid $15.00 per hour before adjusting a tip.

My DH and I always split a meal and if we are not charged a share charge we tip on two meals. If we are chrged, even a dollar we tip on one meal and tell the server why.

Don't worry, be Happy!

Moonchilde · ‎05-23-2010

@viva923 wrote:
unless service has been really super bad

dh and i leave a 20% tip for all waiters/waiteresses. they work hard and we can see how hard they work. the little eating spot we normally go to, those gals give us great service.

we went out to eat last night (just a busy day for both of us). We got to talk with one of the bar lady/ waitresses and she had a free moment away from the bar. She was telling us that when she was just working as waitress, she rarely got tips. on friday-saturday night if she made $15.00 a night that was rich for her. now that she was working the bar, tips were more generous.

I tend to tip 20% for good service, 25% for great service, 18% for decent but lacking in an area (how long it takes to get your check & the bill paid, etc), and 10-15% for very bad service.

If I ask for things that are not brought, if it takes a very long time to get waited on and/or for my food to come out and the server avoids me - won't make eye contact, avoids being within hailing area so I can't even get them to ask what's up - brings my food and never comes back until I want the check, or making me give up and tell a hostess, manager or other server that I want my check now after waiting for it for 15 min twiddling my thumbs - those are 10% tips. No excuse, AFAIC. And also - NOT seeing that the server is busy, i.e. restaurant not crowded, not seeing the person doing tables for 4-6, etc. If it's not your (server's) fault, then find a polite way to let me know that. Keep silent and avoid me and the tip will suffer.

Life without Mexican food is no life at all

151949 · ‎03-09-2010

Most of the time waitresses are paid well below the minimum wage., and as such can depend on tips to live. However, if a person depends upon tips then they need to earn those tips. For a restaurant to assume that you are going to tip 20% no matter how the service was is not right. If I had slow or clumbsy service I certainly do not feel it is appropriate to have to pay an additional 20% tip.Some restaurants assume all waitresses are tipped 15 % or 20% of their total checks and that is what they report to the IRS and base the SS, medicare & tax deductions upon. So if you are the waitress , you need to be earning that much on tips or you'll not break even.

dex · ‎03-09-2010

@missy1 No that is not the reason.He chose not to practice law(shortage of jobs and a change of interest)and has decided on another career path.As an aside a law degree is not easy to obtain...many people left during the first year.

151949 · ‎03-09-2010

@dex It seems to me that a person who got a law degree but then changed his mind and went into a different field should not expect very much pay in return for his degree. For instance I have a nursing degree and some additional certifications but if I left nursing and decided to go into selling widgets - the widget folks would certainly not be paying me for my nursing degree or certifications.