If restaurant workers were paid at least $15/hour, would your tipping habits change?

JBama_in_PCOLA · Mar 28, 2015

Bama Reb said:
I couldn't imagine any chain restaurants such as Waffle House being able to maintain their current price structure and pay all of the help $15 or more an hour. Remember, that is just a starting point. Imagine that if tbe dishwasher who just started last month is getting $15 an hour, how much would the Chef who has been there 10 years expect to make? The breakfast that cost $7.50 yesterday will cost you $27.50 tomorrow.

To the OP: A breakfast for two goes from $15 to $55. A 15% tip runs that up to $63.00.
I'm doing more than reducing the tip I leave. I'm eating at home.

You get the gold medal.

Sent from my iPhone 6 Plus RTR

Tide1986 · Mar 28, 2015

We've had a few people vote that they'd continue tipping their usual percentage. When y'all have a moment, please chime in with your thought process. Thanks.

Also, for those who voted they'd stop tipping altogether, did any of y'all ever work in restaurant and receive tips? Admittedly, I never worked in a restaurant, so maybe I'm insensitive to the plight of restaurant workers. On the other hand, I did work in a grocery store as a kid and received tips for taking out groceries for customers, and I've never tipped a grocery store worker in my adult life.

TIDE-HSV · Mar 28, 2015

tide power fan said:
I find it a much slower pace in Europe, my time is mostly spent in the UK.

My experience has been almost totally on the continent. However, I have been told about slow service in the UK. After all, didn't they invent tipping? (T.I.P. = "To insure promptness")

TIDE-HSV · Mar 28, 2015

Tide1986 said:
We've had a few people vote that they'd continue tipping their usual percentage. When y'all have a moment, please chime in with your thought process. Thanks.

Also, for those who voted they'd stop tipping altogether, did any of y'all ever work in restaurant and receive tips? Admittedly, I never worked in a restaurant, so maybe I'm insensitive to the plight of restaurant workers. On the other hand, I did work in a grocery store as a kid and received tips for taking out groceries for customers, and I've never tipped a grocery store worker in my adult life.

Between my wife and me, we have six kids, all of whom worked in the food trades, which makes us both very sensitive to giving a decent tip. This reminded me that, years ago, my younger daughter was the receptionist at Olive Garden. I met someone there for lunch and left a cash tip. (I had learned that, with some restaurants, not usually the chains, the server received only a small portion of the tip.) After I left, my server came up to my daughter and commented that I had stiffed her. My daughter replied that I was her dad and I'd never stiffed anyone in my life. Well, they put the busser under surveillance. He wasn't scarfing all of the tips, just selected ones and sometimes just part of the tip. He was fired, but he should have been prosecuted...

BamaFlum · Mar 28, 2015

TIDE-HSV said:
I'm afraid you're right. Even as I typed my post, I was thinking that most American servers couldn't handle it. Years ago, when we still owned the condo in Vail, we started out skiing one morning and I realized I needed glove liners, since it was significantly colder than I'd expected. Next door to our development was the "Evergreen Lodge," which was really about a five story hotel, big enough to have a small accessory shop on the ground floor. I circled around, clunking along in ski boots and up to the shop, which was open. However, a morose-looking late teenager was behind the cash register. I picked out what I needed and tendered $15. He apologized that their network was down. I asked if he could open the register. He could. I suggested that I could just leave the money, take the change and leave my business card, with my phone number next door and, at the end of the day, I'd check back by and, if my purchase caused a problem, we could back it out and redo it. He replied "But I wouldn't know how much change to give you." I let that sink in for several seconds. Then I replied that I'd just leave the $15, take the $1.57, sign my name and check back at the end of the day. He brightened up at that and said that would work. I went off just shaking my head...

One major problem in schools is the move to overly complex word problems in math and not just teaching math skills. The math tests are more akin to reading tests with numbers.

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seebell · Mar 28, 2015

Counting change back is a lost art. No need to add or subtract, just count up from the amount of the sale.

BamaFlum · Mar 28, 2015

seebell said:
Counting change back is a lost art. No need to add or subtract, just count up from the amount of the sale.

That's what I was taught. Sale is 3.24. They give you a $5. Add a penny. Add 3 quarters. Add a dollar. Done.

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Bama Reb · Mar 28, 2015

Tide1986 said:
We've had a few people vote that they'd continue tipping their usual percentage. When y'all have a moment, please chime in with your thought process. Thanks.

Also, for those who voted they'd stop tipping altogether, did any of y'all ever work in restaurant and receive tips? Admittedly, I never worked in a restaurant, so maybe I'm insensitive to the plight of restaurant workers. On the other hand, I did work in a grocery store as a kid and received tips for taking out groceries for customers, and I've never tipped a grocery store worker in my adult life.

Yes, I have. It's true that many restaurant workers today work for only a couple of dollars an hour plus tips. That assumes though that all of them are sharing in the tips. For those workers I don't mind leaving an adequate, if not generous, tip. But that point is rendered moot if all of them were all of a sudden would be making $15 an hour. In that case, the tips would most likely go away.

BamaHoHo · Mar 29, 2015

I own a restaurant. It would probably kill most privately owned restaurants. When I get some time to do the math, I'll crunch some #s. Minimum wage for a waitress would go up 7X+. At least 90% of of employees wages would go up just to meet the $15 requirement. Those already making $15 would then have to go up. You want labor cost to be 25%-35% but it must be under 40%. The same goes for food cost. That cost would also go up with a $15 minimum wage along with everything in America. The Middle Class would become closer to non existence. If this were to happen, there is no telling what a plate of food would cost. A hamburger at Hardees and McDonalds would sky rocket and their minimum wage is $7.25. I could go on and on.

TIDE-HSV · Mar 29, 2015

BamaHoHo said:
I own a restaurant. It would probably kill most privately owned restaurants. When I get some time to do the math, I'll crunch some #s. Minimum wage for a waitress would go up 7X+. At least 90% of of employees wages would go up just to meet the $15 requirement. Those already making $15 would then have to go up. You want labor cost to be 25%-35% but it must be under 40%. The same goes for food cost. That cost would also go up with a $15 minimum wage along with everything in America. The Middle Class would become closer to non existence. If this were to happen, there is no telling what a plate of food would cost. A hamburger at Hardees and McDonalds would sky rocket and their minimum wage is $7.25. I could go on and on.

Eating out is significantly more expensive in Europe, has been my experience. I don't have experience in the British Isles, although I've been told costs are similar, and I've not been east to Poland, Romania, etc., so I can't speak to those areas. Also, there are far fewer McD, etc., once out of the main cities. I think it could restructure the entire retail restaurant business here. It would seem to hurt restaurants like you seem to own the most. An important thing to remember is that the consumer is already paying 20% more for the same food as in Europe, right out of the gate, before adjusting for other factors...

Bama Reb · Mar 30, 2015

BamaHoHo said:
I own a restaurant. It would probably kill most privately owned restaurants. When I get some time to do the math, I'll crunch some #s. Minimum wage for a waitress would go up 7X+. At least 90% of of employees wages would go up just to meet the $15 requirement. Those already making $15 would then have to go up. You want labor cost to be 25%-35% but it must be under 40%. The same goes for food cost. That cost would also go up with a $15 minimum wage along with everything in America. The Middle Class would become closer to non existence. If this were to happen, there is no telling what a plate of food would cost. A hamburger at Hardees and McDonalds would sky rocket and their minimum wage is $7.25. I could go on and on.

But you can't have that discussion with the folks who believe that income redistribution (that is, other people's income) is the best way to improve the economic woes of this country. They have never been educated as to how a free market economy really works, what drives it and what pulls it down. The only way they can truly understand how devastating such a policy can be is to see it's effects first-hand. That is, today they want their boss to pay them $15 an hour. Tomorrow, they have no job because that very policy forced their employer to close his business.

CrimsonNagus · Mar 30, 2015

I would stop tipping in a heart beat if they were paid $15/hour.

I hate tipping and the only reason I do it is because it is socially expected. It just bugs me that servers these days don't do good work to earn a tip, we have to tip them to earn good service. Most servers expect a tip the second you walk in the door when instead, they should expect nothing and have to earn it by doing a good job. I have no problem tipping more for great service but, I do have a problem feeling social pressure to leave a tip no matter what, even if the service was bad. We don't eat out that often and part of the reason is my hate of tipping, I just don't enjoy it. I just don't see the benefits in tipping (at least not from a service stand point) because restaurant service seems to get worse all the times these days.

Anyway, I'll stop my tipping rant because I usually end up getting chastised around here for my stance on tipping. My stance is, when I walk through the door, the server has earned nothing and they have until the end of the meal to earn his/her tip.

Displaced Bama Fan · Mar 30, 2015

RollTide1017 said:
I would stop tipping in a heart beat if they were paid $15/hour.

I hate tipping and the only reason I do it is because it is socially expected. It just bugs me that servers these days don't do good work to earn a tip, we have to tip them to earn good service. Most servers expect a tip the second you walk in the door when instead, they should expect nothing and have to earn it by doing a good job. I have no problem tipping more for great service but, I do have a problem feeling social pressure to leave a tip no matter what, even if the service was bad. We don't eat out that often and part of the reason is my hate of tipping, I just don't enjoy it. I just don't see the benefits in tipping (at least not from a service stand point) because restaurant service seems to get worse all the times these days.

Anyway, I'll stop my tipping rant because I usually end up getting chastised around here for my stance on tipping. My stance is, when I walk through the door, the server has earned nothing and they have until the end of the meal to earn his/her tip.

I agree to an extent. Most servers aren't even paid minimum wage so, yes, there is an expectation they are compensated for doing a good job.

Go Bama · Mar 30, 2015

seebell said:
Counting change back is a lost art. No need to add or subtract, just count up from the amount of the sale.

You're telling your age.

crimsonaudio · Mar 30, 2015

RollTide1017 said:
Anyway, I'll stop my tipping rant because I usually end up getting chastised around here for my stance on tipping. My stance is, when I walk through the door, the server has earned nothing and they have until the end of the meal to earn his/her tip.

Considering most servers are only paid a small fraction of minimum wage, yeah, a tip is expected, the size of which is determined by the quality of service. Seems logical to me,as the only other option if to pay them at least minimum wage and let tipping be more optional, based on service quality.

92tide · Mar 30, 2015

seebell said:
Counting change back is a lost art. No need to add or subtract, just count up from the amount of the sale.

us statists are trying to bring back the lost art via common-core

92tide · Mar 30, 2015

RollTide1017 said:
I would stop tipping in a heart beat if they were paid $15/hour.

I hate tipping and the only reason I do it is because it is socially expected. It just bugs me that servers these days don't do good work to earn a tip, we have to tip them to earn good service. Most servers expect a tip the second you walk in the door when instead, they should expect nothing and have to earn it by doing a good job. I have no problem tipping more for great service but, I do have a problem feeling social pressure to leave a tip no matter what, even if the service was bad. We don't eat out that often and part of the reason is my hate of tipping, I just don't enjoy it. I just don't see the benefits in tipping (at least not from a service stand point) because restaurant service seems to get worse all the times these days.

Anyway, I'll stop my tipping rant because I usually end up getting chastised around here for my stance on tipping. My stance is, when I walk through the door, the server has earned nothing and they have until the end of the meal to earn his/her tip.

i would post the scene from reservoir dogs here, but the language is not permitted.

TheAccountant · Mar 30, 2015

I think at $15/hour nationally you would have most restaurants puck up the fast-casual model where you order yourself, fill your own drinks, but someone brings the food out and cleans your table.

TIDE-HSV · Mar 30, 2015

TheAccountant said:
I think at $15/hour nationally you would have most restaurants puck up the fast-casual model where you order yourself, fill your own drinks, but someone brings the food out and cleans your table.

I see that "semi-self serve" model a lot in Europe. When you go full service, you just expect to pay the tariff...

TheAccountant · Mar 30, 2015

92tide said:
i would post the scene from reservoir dogs here, but the language is not permitted.

I bet he's Baptist

If restaurant workers were paid at least $15/hour, would your tipping habits change?

If restaurant workers were paid at least $15/hour, would your tipping habits change?

No, I would keep tipping my usual percentage.

Yes, I would lower my usual tip percentage.

Yes, I would stop tipping restaurant workers.

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