happymomma
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 4,083 
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Post by happymomma on Feb 22, 2015 21:01:33 GMT
I ask this respectfully as I've never been a server. How is it way more work to seat someone and bring them a beverage at a buffet than it is to take their order, serve it and continue to bring them whatever they might request instead of them just going up to the food and getting it themselves? I am genuinely interested in your answer, because husband and I just had the buffet tipping conversation yesterday. Because I had to check in at their table way more often than at a regular meal, bring them way more beverages than during a regular meal, continue to keep clearing away dirty plates than at a regular meal, etc. I didn't just seat them and never see them again. ETA: and for whatever reason, people leave way bigger messes at the table when eating at a buffet. I had to clean that all up -- no other staff to do that at the restaurant I worked at. Thank you for your honest answer. As I said, I've never been a server, as uncoordinated as I am that would be a disaster. It's always so good to read here, we get a good education from others' perspective. |
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Post by lightetc on Feb 22, 2015 21:40:16 GMT
My brother and his girlfriend work in the hospitality industry in Australia. They can earn hundreds of dollars a week in tips working in a 5 star restaurant. Or they could, until we brought in the pin only credit card authorisation. Now, instead of bringing a receipt to the table to be signed and having the tip added on with a pen, they need to bring the machine to the table, and often the authorised user is not the server from the table. Anyway, the whole thing is twice as hard and new.. Meaning most people don't tip anymore.
That said, it's certainly not expected most places and unless you're in a very fancy restaurant, not something that I encounter.
I hated eating out in the USA, mostly I think because the price on our menus in Australia includes the servers' wages AND tax. Hence when I was doing my mental calcs, I'd add up the prices on the menu, but then the actual cost would end up being twice as much once you add tip and tax. Perhaps if it was normal for me I'd cope better.
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Post by chaosisapony on Feb 22, 2015 21:51:57 GMT
Oregon servers get minimum wage too, and Washignton has the highest minimum wage in Helen county, Oregon's minimum wage is not that far down the list either. It totally irks me to tip the same as I would in California or another state where the servers don't make minimum wage. It irks me even more now that people at Starbucks and places like that expect tips too. I have lived in California my entire life and I assure you our servers and restaurant staff make state minimum wage, which at the moment is $9.00/hour. The older I get the more irritated I get about tipping. I work hard and have worked hard providing excellent service in all of the jobs I have had my whole life. I have always had customer oriented jobs. But somehow because I don't handle food $9.00/hour is plenty and I get no tips. But heaven forbid I should touch food then I should get $9.00 hour + tips??? If we are going to tip minimum wage employees then we should tip all of them. It just doesn't make sense and it irritates me. Maybe if a person wants to make more than minimum wage they should get a non minimum wage paying job. |
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Post by scrappysurfer on Feb 22, 2015 22:15:47 GMT
I had no idea that CA servers make minimum wage. Here in SC, servers make $2.13/hr, bartenders $3 or more.
I can guarantee that I made $20 to $30 per hour from tips waiting tables and bartending. No way would I want to take that pay cut!! Hell, I took a minor pay cut when I started nursing, except for now I have insurance and 401k.
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Post by Eddie-n-Harley on Feb 22, 2015 22:37:08 GMT
I ask this respectfully as I've never been a server. How is it way more work to seat someone and bring them a beverage at a buffet than it is to take their order, serve it and continue to bring them whatever they might request instead of them just going up to the food and getting it themselves? I am genuinely interested in your answer, because husband and I just had the buffet tipping conversation yesterday. Because I had to check in at their table way more often than at a regular meal, bring them way more beverages than during a regular meal, continue to keep clearing away dirty plates than at a regular meal, etc. I didn't just seat them and never see them again. ETA: and for whatever reason, people leave way bigger messes at the table when eating at a buffet. I had to clean that all up -- no other staff to do that at the restaurant I worked at. When I was a waitress, I was also responsible for helping to keep the buffet stocked-- checking it, replenishing food as it came up from the kitchen, setting it up if I opened or taking it down if closed. This included a hot section of the buffet, two soup stations, and an entire salad bar. Frankly, though once I got wise to the people who didn't tip at all, I stopped clearing their dirty plates and tried to avoid refilling their glasses. (I actually only recall one table doing that: they had to sit as close to the buffet as possible and would order iced tea for free refills. By not tipping, I figured they were telling me my efforts were worth $0, so I gave them as close to zero as I could.) ETA: I found an interesting table from the Department of Labor. Minimum Wages for Tipped Employees |
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Post by myshelly on Feb 22, 2015 23:04:06 GMT
I hate it when buffets have waiters.
Put the soda fountain at the end of the buffet so people can get their own drinks and pay the employees minimum wage. Don't call them servers and expect them to get tips.
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Post by ktdoesntscrap on Feb 22, 2015 23:11:35 GMT
We travel to the Caribbean a couple times a year. I firmly believe in generous tipping there--Mexico, Belize, Haiti, Jamaica. These places and their people depend on tourism and their living conditions are so far less than ideal. No way I'm not going to tip and over tip when im the American on vacation in the Caribbean. Many places in the Caribbean a service charge is added to the bill, but that is not a tip. The money does not go to the person who served you it is split amongst all the staff, if it is a big resort... EVERYONE gets some of that, even the hotel manager, if you want to tip your waiter, I always make sure to have cash and to say.. this is a tip for you!!! |
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Post by craftsbycarolyn on Feb 22, 2015 23:24:03 GMT
My two cents. Regardless of how the wages are made, we the customer are paying the server's wages, whether it be via tips or menu prices increasing to cover wages. I would rather pay bigger menu prices than feel like I am paying the server's wages with a tip. Although we normally tip 20%, it still burns my butt...I think employees should pay the servers minimum wage what they are worth. |
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Post by Skellinton on Feb 22, 2015 23:35:11 GMT
Oregon servers get minimum wage too, and Washignton has the highest minimum wage in Helen county, Oregon's minimum wage is not that far down the list either. It totally irks me to tip the same as I would in California or another state where the servers don't make minimum wage. It irks me even more now that people at Starbucks and places like that expect tips too. I have lived in California my entire life and I assure you our servers and restaurant staff make state minimum wage, which at the moment is $9.00/hour. The older I get the more irritated I get about tipping. I work hard and have worked hard providing excellent service in all of the jobs I have had my whole life. I have always had customer oriented jobs. But somehow because I don't handle food $9.00/hour is plenty and I get no tips. But heaven forbid I should touch food then I should get $9.00 hour + tips??? If we are going to tip minimum wage employees then we should tip all of them. It just doesn't make sense and it irritates me. Maybe if a person wants to make more than minimum wage they should get a non minimum wage paying job. I am sorry I slandered the state of California by saying that their employees didn't make minimum wage. I was told that they didn't by someone who lived there many years ago when I first heard that servers didn't make minimum wage. I apologize profusely for spreading erroneous information. |
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tanya2
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Refupea #1604
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Post by tanya2 on Feb 23, 2015 0:06:27 GMT
Ontario minimum wage for servers is $9.55/hour (student minimum is 10.30, regular minimum is 11.00) - so it is less & they do count on the tips. But $2.13 is just insane!!!
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tanya2
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Post by tanya2 on Feb 23, 2015 0:07:22 GMT
and with that post I'm now a "Throbbing Member" - hmmm.....  too bad it only lasted 1 post LOL |
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johnnysmom
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Jun 25, 2014 21:16:33 GMT
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Post by johnnysmom on Feb 23, 2015 0:16:09 GMT
I have so many tipping pet peeves, but the biggest one is how does the "standard" tip amount keep creeping up? It used to be 15%, then 18%, now we're at 20%. The menu prices are going up so in theory the waitstaff should be making more even at the same percentage (though 20% is my go-to for decent service....simply because the math is easy).
That said, is the standard rate still only $2.13/hr??!?!?!? That's what it was when I was a waitress in the 90's, at that time it was half of minimum wage, why on earth hasn't it increased as min. wage has gone up?
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Post by chaosisapony on Feb 23, 2015 0:26:07 GMT
I have lived in California my entire life and I assure you our servers and restaurant staff make state minimum wage, which at the moment is $9.00/hour. The older I get the more irritated I get about tipping. I work hard and have worked hard providing excellent service in all of the jobs I have had my whole life. I have always had customer oriented jobs. But somehow because I don't handle food $9.00/hour is plenty and I get no tips. But heaven forbid I should touch food then I should get $9.00 hour + tips??? If we are going to tip minimum wage employees then we should tip all of them. It just doesn't make sense and it irritates me. Maybe if a person wants to make more than minimum wage they should get a non minimum wage paying job. I am sorry I slandered the state of California by saying that their employees didn't make minimum wage. I was told that they didn't by someone who lived there many years ago when I first heard that servers didn't make minimum wage. I apologize profusely for spreading erroneous information. It sounds like you think I was being snarky in my reply. I wasn't at all. Just letting you know the minimum wage since you sounded annoyed at tipping like I am. |
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Post by littlemama on Feb 23, 2015 1:25:09 GMT
I hate the whole concept of tipping because it has gotten so out of hand. I would much rather restaurants pay their servers a wage appropriate to the work/type of business and the whole tipping thing can just go away. I tip reasonably - starts at 15 percent and can go up or down from there. That is for servers making the server wage. I don't tip at fast food places, wouldn't tip at Starbucks, and don't tip delivery people (like furniture or appliance). Those folks are paid more than server wage and any "tip" is more than rolled into the price. I tip the pizza guy when he delivers to my door - when our wind chill was 25 below last week, I tipped 20 percent to the pizza delivery person. Normally I don't tip quite that much, but it was flipping miserable and I appreciated not having to go get it.
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AmeliaBloomer
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Posts: 6,842
Location: USA
Jun 26, 2014 5:01:45 GMT
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Post by AmeliaBloomer on Feb 23, 2015 1:47:05 GMT
I've worked as a waitress before and it's a fun AND crappy job all at the same time! I tend to tip over here when I have had 'full service' i.e. I sit at a table, the order is taken and the food brought to me (preferably by the same person!) but never think to do so in a Starbucks et al. I have spent a lot of time in the US so am very familiar with tipping but the thing that annoyed my SO much the last time or two I was there was the number of times the waiter would come to take your money and ask if you wanted/needed the change without even knowing how much you had put down. It actually made me feel like leaving the absolute minimum versus what I would have!  I used to always say, "I'll be right back with your change," which gave the customer the chance to demur. Complication: If a $39 bill had two twenties and a five on top of it, I would assume the (15ish%) change was mine if the customer didn't speak up. Ninety eight percent of the time I was right...unless I wasn't. Then I was stiffed for being grabby. I think the "Do you need change" you dislike has become shorthand for clarifying intent. (Me? I'm bugged by "No problem" instead of "You're welcome.") On the other hand, I know servers in high tourist areas can be very passive aggressive with non-Americans. Obnoxious, yes. |
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Post by nepean on Feb 23, 2015 2:36:27 GMT
I have so many tipping pet peeves, but the biggest one is how does the "standard" tip amount keep creeping up? It used to be 15%, then 18%, now we're at 20%. The menu prices are going up so in theory the waitstaff should be making more even at the same percentage (though 20% is my go-to for decent service....simply because the math is easy). That said, is the standard rate still only $2.13/hr??!?!?!? That's what it was when I was a waitress in the 90's, at that time it was half of minimum wage, why on earth hasn't it increased as min. wage has gone up? ITA in fact I started a thread on the old board about the expected tip percentage continuing to rise. When I first visited the US 20 years ago, we were advised as tourists that the standard tip was 10-15%, yet now (we live here now) we are expected to give 20% or servers get their noses out of joint. DH and I do tip 20%, but where does it end? 20 years from now expecting 25-30%. |
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Post by iamkristinl16 on Feb 23, 2015 2:59:48 GMT
I worked at Applebee's in college and right after, which was about 18 years ago. I got paid $3 per hour which was less than minimum wage. Then tips. So, that system has been around for a long time. I do agree that it is strange. What bothers me even more is that it seems like every restaurant has a tip jar out, from the ice cream shop to the coffee shop to a Chinese restaurant. Places where they don't serve you at all.
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Post by gmcwife1 on Feb 23, 2015 3:01:57 GMT
I tip well. Do other countries pay servers so little that tips are essential to actually make a living wage or is it an American thing? I doubt there has been a tipping thread where our non American friends didn't comment on our tipping ways. I'm surprised you've missed all of them  |
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happymomma
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 4,083
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Post by happymomma on Feb 23, 2015 3:20:10 GMT
I tip well. Do other countries pay servers so little that tips are essential to actually make a living wage or is it an American thing? I doubt there has been a tipping thread where our non American friends didn't comment on our tipping ways. I'm surprised you've missed all of them I haven't been around here much for quite some time. |
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Deleted
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Aug 18, 2025 19:47:46 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Feb 23, 2015 4:18:04 GMT
I have so many tipping pet peeves, but the biggest one is how does the "standard" tip amount keep creeping up? It used to be 15%, then 18%, now we're at 20%. The menu prices are going up so in theory the waitstaff should be making more even at the same percentage (though 20% is my go-to for decent service....simply because the math is easy). That said, is the standard rate still only $2.13/hr??!?!?!? That's what it was when I was a waitress in the 90's, at that time it was half of minimum wage, why on earth hasn't it increased as min. wage has gone up? ITA in fact I started a thread on the old board about the expected tip percentage continuing to rise. When I first visited the US 20 years ago, we were advised as tourists that the standard tip was 10-15%, yet now (we live here now) we are expected to give 20% or servers get their noses out of joint. DH and I do tip 20%, but where does it end? 20 years from now expecting 25-30%. A five percent raise in twenty years? You don't think that's very modest? I would be pissed if my wage had only increased five percent in twenty years. |
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Post by KiwiJo on Feb 23, 2015 4:33:56 GMT
As Polz said up thread, there is no tipping in New Zealand - I have never tipped anyone here at all. And it is really annoying when tourists tip while they are here, especially Americans, because their tips are so big. It means that waiters start to expect tips, even from locals. We have a minimum wage, which is a liveable wage, and it applies to everyone; so there is simply no need to tip. I hear on forums such as Trip Advisor, people asking why not tipyour waiter for good service. My answer is that it is totally unfair - they don't tip the person who fills up their car at the petrol station, or the person serving them at the supermarket, or the guide at the tourist site etc; and yet the waiter will be earning just as much as any of them, maybe more. Tip in your own country if that,s the norm, but don't tip when visiting countries where it is not the norm. Ok, rant over. |
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Post by myshelly on Feb 23, 2015 4:34:46 GMT
ITA in fact I started a thread on the old board about the expected tip percentage continuing to rise. When I first visited the US 20 years ago, we were advised as tourists that the standard tip was 10-15%, yet now (we live here now) we are expected to give 20% or servers get their noses out of joint. DH and I do tip 20%, but where does it end? 20 years from now expecting 25-30%. A five percent raise in twenty years? You don't think that's very modest? I would be pissed if my wage had only increased five percent in twenty years. But prices have gone up, so if the percentage stayed the same they would still be getting a raise. 15% tip on today's price is more than a 15% tip on 20 year's ago price. They don't need the % increase to be getting an increase. |
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Post by cbet on Feb 23, 2015 4:37:28 GMT
A five percent raise in twenty years? You don't think that's very modest? I would be pissed if my wage had only increased five percent in twenty years. But the percent of the tip is based on the price of the food, and the price of the food has increased over that twenty years. So if 5 years ago an item was $10, the 20% tip would be $2; if the price now is $15, the tip would be $3. That extra dollar actually calculates out to a 50% increase - the same percent the price of the food increased - even though the tip percent didn't change. (I'm not saying that most items that were $10 five years ago are now $15 - I was just trying to find nice round numbers to work with). |
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Post by padresfan619 on Feb 23, 2015 4:40:57 GMT
I never feel obligated to tip at counter service places just because they have a tip jar out. A sandwich shop near my house has an ongoing tip jar battle, the most recent was for who had more fans in San Diego, Charger or Raiders? You bet I was sticking $5 in the Charger jar. But I also get really good service at this place and it is locally owned and operated. I don't mind tossing in a few bucks.
I really just can't bring myself to get outraged about tipping in a restaurant setting. I don't have to cook, do my dishes or even fetch my own drinks - I think that deserves a little something.
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happymomma
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 4,083
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Post by happymomma on Feb 23, 2015 4:51:10 GMT
I don't get outraged at the idea of tipping for good service, please don't get me wrong. Actually I'm not outraged about anything. I just wish that employers paid a decent wage instead of servers having to count on tips to make it. I'd still tip for good service I guess it's just the principle and I'm still not clear on why this system is in place (in some states, including mine.)
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Post by Sukkii on Feb 23, 2015 4:55:15 GMT
In Singapore service charge (10% I think) is added onto every bill therefore tipping is not expected. If we are paying by cash and the service was good, we will often leave a few dollars tip but not always. I will tell food delivery guys and taxi drivers to "keep the change" but it would not likely be more than 10%, very often it is much less. In the UK, I will tip if the service was good but again no more than 10% and again not every time. I am now so unaccustomed to tipping if I went to the US all the servers would hate me  |
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Post by doesitmatter on Feb 23, 2015 5:18:22 GMT
Our local minimum wage just got raised to $12.25. I know a few restaurants are shifting to slight price increases and no tipping. Fine by me. Can I ask where you are? Our minimum wage is $8.55 but $8.25 if they offer any benefits. Crazy. |
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Post by AussieMeg on Feb 23, 2015 6:16:33 GMT
I was shocked the other day when I learned here that the wage for servers was only something pitiful like $2.65. Here the servers get minimum wage which would Be $16+ (more on a Sunday or public holiday with penalty rates). So we don't tip very often, because we don't have to subsidise their wages.
And I would never ever in a million years tip anyone else such as hairdresser etc. Never.
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AllieC
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Posts: 3,129
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Post by AllieC on Feb 23, 2015 8:52:49 GMT
Ditto. My 17 year old daughter works at a cake store and gets $14 per hour. I would hate to have to rely on tips to make a living.
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Post by leftturnonly on Feb 23, 2015 9:12:58 GMT
I tip well. But I'm trying to figure out when the tipping thing got so out of control. By that I mean when did we as a country start tipping not just for good service but out of obligation because of the ridiculous system of paying servers a sub-human wage and them depending on tips to bring their pay up to a live able rate. At times I feel a bit annoyed at this. It shouldn't be the customers' obligation to pay the wages of a business owner's staff. My opinion only. I know I 'served' people through my actions in my career as a hospital buyer. I was paid a very good wage for my work, and getting a tip wasn't even in the realm of possibility. Nor should it have been. Do other countries pay servers so little that tips are essential to actually make a living wage or is it an American thing? I'm all for rewarding excellent service, but find myself tipping high just for run of the mill service. Because I do feel bad for those workers. Why don't employers just pay a fair wage to begin with? My random pondering for the day. My standard has always been 15%. I do not tip on tax, but I may bump the % if the service was decent. So what's on the restaurant bills I've gotten recently? Predetermined tip suggestions STARTING at 18% and up. I waited tables. I know the drill. But woe man! I agree, tipping has gotten crazy. myshellyExactly! AND now they want 18%+ on the total amount, which includes tax. |
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