Tipping at restaurants

[tcg]

Originally Posted by Gordon Dewald

Now we are talking about tips as being wages!!! When did it start that the customer was supposed to pay for food and additionally pay for service? Something is seriously off of the rails. Are we next going to be expected to pony up for table, chairs and paint on the wall?

Employers should be required to pay a reasonable wage for the work performed. Then it is up to the owner to regulate how the employees act and respond to the customers instead of the server hoping the customer will bribe them to provide a good experience.

You do know that's how business works, right?

The price of that Big Mac includes the cost of advertising, maintenance, painting the walls, new cash registers, etc...

Whether they are compensated through tips or a living wage, make no mistake the customer is paying for that business to do business and make a profit.

Some establishments where the wait staff is far exceeding minimum wage including tips are going to have to charge way more than 15 - 20 percent more for menu items to pay them what they're making through tips.

When a country as a whole can't seem to get together on a minimum wage I'm guessing raising the cost of menu items to pay those waiters and waitresses a decent wage ain't going to go over too well.

[wildtoad]

If restaurants had to pay servers full wages ( you fill in the number! ) and benefits, no tipping, the real cost of the providing the food would need to be printed on the menus and it would drive customers away. We already see restaurants getting rid of servers and replacing them with self serve kiosks, tablets, and converting to buffets where you serve yourself, and this trend will continue and accelerate. You don’t see as many busboys as servers now do that job too at many places.

My problem with tipping is that it should not be based on the price of the meal as it cheats the breakfast and lunch staff as the cost of the meals are much lower than dinner and takes as much if not more work.

[Tireman9]

Originally Posted by Superslif

We simply tip on the " attentiveness " of the server. Very simple, if the server makes an effort to " hey you need another Coke".... but being ignored, or "repeatedly" asked for something and never getting it. Even if the service is sub-par, we will tip 8% as in our state (Ohio), the server is "taxed" 8% of her nightly sales.
But once or twice, my wife who herself was a fine dining server, we left no tip for absolutely poor service.

Where did you get the idea that servers are "taxed" on the food they serve here in Ohio. I have never heard of that being the case in any state. Servers do pay income tax and their "Income" is their base pay which can be as low as $2.13 an hour plus the income from tips. Ref HERE. If it is a slow night or there is bad weather and people stay home then the wait staff is only getting paid $2.13 in many states.

[okcnewbie]

Proudly did my part to keep the average going above 20% last night....

[tcg]

Originally Posted by Tireman9

Where did you get the idea that servers are "taxed" on the food they serve here in Ohio. I have never heard of that being the case in any state. Servers do pay income tax and their "Income" is their base pay which can be as low as $2.13 an hour plus the income from tips. Ref HERE. If it is a slow night or there is bad weather and people stay home then the wait staff is only getting paid $2.13 in many states.

If it's a slow night and they don't make enough tips to bring the up to minimum wage the employer must pay them more to bring them up to minimum wage.

When I worked as a waiter a million years ago tips were mostly cash but there still was a fair share on credit cards. The IRS assumed you were not reporting all of your cash tips so the restaurant was required to report a minimum percentage based on total sales that I waited on.

That is probablly what the poster above was referring to in Ohio.

[Gordon Dewald]

Reflecting on the topic of tipping and throwing in the topic of MSRP I am struck by the oxymoron applied to the two topics.

First we expect a 25 - 30% discount on the manufacturer MSRP. Then we complain that the workers do not produce a quality product because they are low paid and not well trained.

On the other hand we look at the menu prices (owner MSRP) and determine we should bulk the prices up by 20% because the servers are low paid and in many cases not well trained.

Do you think there is a level of inconsistency when you compare the two topics, both discussed at length on this forum.

[rvethereyet]

auto 20%. So if you stay at home you save at least 20%. And if you add drinks on top of that you just saved $100 bucks.

[TwelveVolt]

Originally Posted by Gordon Dewald

On the other hand we look at the menu prices (owner MSRP) and determine we should bulk the prices up by 20% because the servers are low paid and in many cases not well trained.

My AARP card gets me 10% off MSRP at Outback.
Let the discussion begin...

[okcnewbie]

Originally Posted by TwelveVolt

My AARP card gets me 10% off MSRP at Outback.
Let the discussion begin...

AARP..... just sayin' that is close to breaking the "No Politics" rules.

[Solo_RV_Guy]

Originally Posted by Springs1

How is the server paying taxes on money that the restaurant makes? The server has to pay taxes on their income, not what the restaurant takes in. At most restaurants, they have the servers tip out a percentage of sales to the bartender(if they have one) host or hostess(if they have one), and busser. The server isn't paying taxes on money he or she isn't making. Why would the server pay taxes on income that they didn't make?

The answer is "because the IRS assumes that servers make an average of x% of total sales and that under or non-reporting of cash tip income is common." If a server doesn't report at least that percentage of tips at the end of the shift the *employer* is required to withhold taxes on the equivalent of the missing tips from the servers hourly wages.


Some states do this (Ohio is but one), too.

[Solo_RV_Guy]

Originally Posted by Springs1

No, because you think the servers and bartenders shouldn't be your slave, DUH! I mean that's their job to do your EVERY LITTLE WHIM AND THEN SOME, TO BE "PAMPERED" as you call it if they want your money. NOW you understand? It's not about not tipping, it's about your attitude that what a server's job is. You think it's not that, but it actually is. It's their job to do every little thing we want and if they want higher tips, then they should try to do extra stuff for you. Their job is to do whatever you want(of course within reason). They are at the customer's mercy if they want our money to decide to be a hard worker or not.

It looks like you two are talking past each other; you're more in agreement than not.


My observation about tipping in general:

Tipping was not originally meant to be a source of wages but a reward for special or exemplary service. When it became either customary or expected, business owners saw it as a way to transfer labor expenses directly to the customer. Anyone with a free-market background will immediately see why the owners of businesses might find this appealing.

[rlott2k]

Originally Posted by grindstone01

Wife and I are running a christmas tree lot for the 5th year now. Tipping is a big part of our salary and about a third of the customers will tip. After cutting the tree trunk and tying the tree on top of a vehicle, it feels good to get a $5 tip on a $150 tree sale.

I gonna go out on a limb and say if you can spend $150 on a 2 week ornament you have enough money to throw around for a $5 tip.

[Monacoach]

Originally Posted by rlott2k

I gonna go out on a limb and say if you can spend $150 on a 2 week ornament you have enough money to throw around for a $5 tip.

Could just charge $155.

[SarahW]

I think I'd be embarrassed to go out for dinner with some of you.

And wow, do some people have a lot invested in this thread. Good grief; do whatever you want and let others do the same.