Why do we tip? Who made this rule? Why don't all jobs get free money on the side?

Question

I'm not an excessively cheap guy, but this always has bothered me. Take Steve Buscemi out of "Resivoir Dogs," and give a legit response. Sure it is a rough job for minimum wage, but are you telling me that is tougher than the guys who work at Labor Ready picking up construction debris? Lifting up plates that weigh a few pounds and getting refills is not nearly as taxing as picking up chunks of concrete and wheeling them from place to place, both at the lowest legal wage. The workers as McDonalds work harder than the guys/gals at Red Robin, yet get 0 tips. I always get a kick out of waiters complaining about getting shafted on tips. If you need that extra money then go get a real job. I've worked hard in all of my jobs, and never get tipped out an extra 20% of what the person is spending. Why did this become standard? I am down to give somebody money for extra effort outside of their job description, no problem. How about gas attendants that wash your windshield?

How is legal for them to get paid less than minimum wage? I still don't think it is right to expect other people (not your company) to give you extra money after they've already paid for their meals. At least here in Oregon it is illegal for them to pay the wait staff less.

And FYI, I did work as a waiter for a spell, and the job sucks. I don't care enough about a few bucks that I'm going to suck up to some guy and tell him how great he is. You basically just try to be dishonest, and pretend to care in order to make extra money....that sounds really moral, doesn't it? And just so you know, almost every job site gets tons of minimum wage help for clean up. The skilled labor gets paid very well, and the temp agency guys get shafted.

Answer 1

Jimmy, Jimmy, Jimmy. - The correct term is 'gratuity', not 'tip'. And no I don't always agree with it, either. It is supposed to be a way for a patron to give thanks for 'exceptional service beyond what is normally expected or received' - But through the decades it has morphed into an expected supplement to income. Emily Post and Miss Manners did not help when they said gratuities are expected. As a result, restaurants can get away with paying as little as $2.00/hr and the IRS can demand wait staff claim tips as income and levy taxes on it. Also, in many restaurants, the tips are split between the waitress and kitchen staff.
That money is already being taxed through the tipper because how many of us claim tips as a deduction? Free money for Uncle Sam.
I am a cheap guy, but I will tip a standard 10-15% ddepending upon the quality of service, food preparation, dining atmosphere and cleanliness. I will also deduct and possibly withhold tipping for less than average service, dirty facilities, cold. slow food and bad attitude on the part of the personnel.
My first job was as a short-order cook/waiter in a chain of one-man hamburger stands, and I appreciate what professional servers are going through. Very few things are as rewarding as watching someone work who loves their job.

Answer 2

No offense but you're way off on what it is to be a server. I did it for almost 15 years and I never lied to anyone. If I didn't recommend something on the menu I said so. If there was something that I thought you should try I would say that too. If I'd waited on you before I would generally know what you drank, what you ate and whether you liked it. I could use that info to suggest something else you might like. I had a good enough repore with the kitchen that if you'd had something at the restaurant before that we didn't currently offer I could probably get it for you anyway. I almost never had to be asked for a refill because it would be there before you had a chance. The problem is that so many kids who hold the job today don't understand what the job actually entails. I am very honest in my tips to servers. If they're good, I tip very well (25%) because they can add something to the experience of the restaurant. If they suck I won't though. I don't want to encourage bad service. And for the record, the going rate for servers is anywhere from 2.19 to 2.83/hr. And they get taxed based on their sales so if you tip poorly they're getting taxed on money they didn't make. So the moneys by no means free. I won't stand up and say the job sucks though. I wouldn't have done it for that long if I hated it. I haven't been in a McDonalds in a long time where I have seen people working as hard as a good server does. I don't know where you're getting that.

Answer 3

We tip in order to keep a restaurant in business. Most owners of resturants (besides the famous chains) make about 12 cents per plate sold. thats what they earn after taxes, fees, licenses, food costs, employee costs, etc. Most restaurants employ an average of 15 servers. If they were paying these servers a full wage, the business would not succeed. So, servers are paid a very low wage (2-3 an hour) and it is made up for with tips.

If you cant afford to leave a decent tip, you cant afford to go out to eat. It is a cost that you sould see as included with the expereince of dining out. Order out if you don't want to tip.

Also, if a server does not average a minimum wage (5.85) for 40 hours worth of work, it is up to the resturant to compensate for the rest of that. I have never had a problem with bringing that in, though.

One more thing....if you hated serving a smuch as you did and you view it as you do, you probably sucked a** at it. I live for waiting tables. It is one of the most rewarding jobs ever. But to each his own, I guess. There are people out there that make serving an actualy career and bring in over 60 grand a year from it, if not more.

Answer 4

The tradition began in the Old English Pubs the word stood for *To* Insure *Promptness* The tradition was brought to America Thur are earliest settlers. It's unfortunate that the industry's way of profiting off this ancient tradition is to pay min. wage to what would otherwise be a much higher paying job. It forced the government to view tips as income and they monitor them by automatically taxing all workers that receive tips. All servers get charged taxes from each sale they make. They pay the government 8% of every dollar that they sell and if they don't recieve a tip they still are required to give Uncle Sam 8%

Answer 5

I agree with you, and I had waited tables to.
I also feel that the public should not feel obligated to pad my wage as it is lower than most. I expected tips when I went out of my way. When I did not, I did not expect tips but usually did since most people feel obligated and yes, tipping is almost the standard now.
I moved on as I wanted a better paying job - that is my responsibility, not the customers.

Answer 6

The waiters do not get paid minimum wage. They get paid about $3 or $4 per hour and then the tips they earn make up the rest.

Answer 7

I was always wondering that. I work at subway and Its like once a month, I see a dollar in tips. Yet I am working my *** of trying to pump out 90 sandwiches and hour! Its not an easy job, as most might think. I think that if anyone does any kind of service for you, that you can do yourself, they should get tipped.

Answer 8

I think you're talkin' outta your @zz. You should work as a waiter/waitress, before you spew your ignorance throughout Y!A. I don't know where you're from, but, on my end of the world, construction workers are very well paid ... and waiters/waitresses make no where near what a construction worker makes. Simply don't tip, if it irks you so much to do so ... :(

Answer 9

BECAUSE THEY ARE WAITING ON YOU! McD's takes an order and throws it in a bag, they dont get you extra dressing, refill your drinks, bring you extra lemons ect ect...PLUS they dont make but $3/hour thats why thye keep the tips as extra to make up for it!

Answer 10

Most wait staff don't earn the $5.85 "minimum wage" as you believe. Most are paid significantly less.