No more rent moving to an RV

[Lou Schneider]

I like the tipping culture as I really think it can lead to better service.

A lot has to do with your attitude. I find I get good service at most places I go. One time I went to a restaurant where a single waitress was being run haggard by two large groups who came in a few minutes before me. They were complaining about having to wait for her to take their orders, fill their water glasses, etc. When she finally got to me she apologized for making me wait, I smiled and said something like no problem, it looks like they're really keeping you busy. She looked at me in disbelief and somehow my food came out before anyone else's.

 

[DonTom]

I like the tipping culture as I really think it can lead to better service.

Why? They just split the tips in most cases, here in the USA. It all goes into the same pot.

What does tipping have to do with "better service" ? Absolutely NOTHING!:

"Yes, most restaurants split tips to ensure fair compensation for all staff involved in providing service, even if they don’t directly receive tips from customers.

"Common Tip-Splitting Methods​

• Tip Pooling: All tips are collected into a shared pool and distributed among eligible employees based on a set formula (e.g., percentages, points, or hours worked). This is common in full-service restaurants.
• Tip Sharing: Servers voluntarily give a portion of their tips to supporting staff (e.g., 10% to bartenders, 25–30% to bussers, expediters, and hosts).
• Points System: Employees are assigned points based on their role (e.g., servers = 10 points, bussers = 5 points), and the tip pool is divided by total points to determine individual payouts.
• Hours Worked: Pooled tips are divided based on how many hours each server worked, ensuring fairness when shifts vary in length.

Who Gets a Share?​

• Eligible staff typically include bartenders, bussers, food runners, hosts, and captains who provide direct customer service.
• Non-tipped staff like cooks, dishwashers, and managers generally cannot be included in mandatory tip pools under federal law unless the restaurant uses a "tip credit" and complies with state-specific rules. "

 

[Lou Schneider]

Why? They just split the tips in most cases, here in the USA. It all goes into the same pot.

What does tipping have to do with "better service" ? Absolutely NOTHING!:

"Yes, most restaurants split tips to ensure fair compensation for all staff involved in providing service, even if they don’t directly receive tips from customers.

"Common Tip-Splitting Methods​

• Tip Pooling: All tips are collected into a shared pool and distributed among eligible employees based on a set formula (e.g., percentages, points, or hours worked). This is common in full-service restaurants.
• Tip Sharing: Servers voluntarily give a portion of their tips to supporting staff (e.g., 10% to bartenders, 25–30% to bussers, expediters, and hosts).
• Points System: Employees are assigned points based on their role (e.g., servers = 10 points, bussers = 5 points), and the tip pool is divided by total points to determine individual payouts.
• Hours Worked: Pooled tips are divided based on how many hours each server worked, ensuring fairness when shifts vary in length.

Who Gets a Share?​

• Eligible staff typically include bartenders, bussers, food runners, hosts, and captains who provide direct customer service.
• Non-tipped staff like cooks, dishwashers, and managers generally cannot be included in mandatory tip pools under federal law unless the restaurant uses a "tip credit" and complies with state-specific rules. "

So? The back of house staff work just as hard as those out front and they contribute just as much to the overall experience. Why shouldn't they share in the tips?

 

[DonTom]

Why shouldn't they share in the tips?

That wasn't my point. My point is that the tips have nothing to do with getting good or poor service.

Also, some people tip well, some do not. Let's have a fair system with no tipping and prices higher by 15-20%.

These days, they usually even expect a tip on food to go.

I favor standardizing the entire thing.

-Don- Gunsight Wash, AZ

 

[TheBar]

Why? They just split the tips in most cases, here in the USA. It all goes into the same pot.

Having been a steak house manager for years I can definitely say that depends on the type of restaurant.

Tip pooling may be common in the majority chain places like Denny's where a wait person may make $100/day in tips. But not in privately owned steak houses where a good wait person may make $800+.

If you really think money has nothing to do with incentive you are living in a theoretical dream world. Share and share alike translates to nobody working very hard.

In many states tipped employees make less than minimum wage. Chain restaurants get away with paying less to everyone by pooling (stealing) tips from the wait staff.

If you've ever waited tables you know it is one of the most stressful and demanding jobs in the world. Can you imagine smiling for 8 hours and putting up with demanding customers only to have your tip money divided up with the stoned dishwasher in the back?

 

[TheBar]

Not that I recall. I do recall gas stations would charge more for credit but that was later made illegal. But that did not last long and it is legal again.

IIRC, it was only gas stations that charged more for credit.

-Don- Why, AZ

It may have been only gas stations where you live or maybe you've used credit cards less than I did. I've run across the 3% credit card fees in every type of business from coast to coast for 40 years. And the legality back then was mostly variable by state.

 

[Derby6]

We went from no rent, gonna get an RV to financing recommendations to tipping and CC fees.
Thread creep beyond belief.

 

[Jackiemac]

We went from no rent, gonna get an RV to financing recommendations to tipping and CC fees.
Thread creep beyond belief.

Just like a normal conversation

 

[Larry N.]

We went from no rent, gonna get an RV to financing recommendations to tipping and CC fees.
Thread creep beyond belief.

And the OP hasn't been here since November...

 

[RayIN]

I tip generously if I get good service, a habit I learned from Bill Waugh when I saw him quietly leave a $100 bill on the table after we ate in a local Quartzsite restaurant last year. When I asked he said he could afford it, the friendly waitress worked hard and probably could use the extra money.

After thinking about it for a bit, I decided I could do the same, in spite of (or maybe because of) my being generally thrifty. Maybe not $100 at a time but a few extra bucks can make a big difference to someone struggling to get by.

Especially in a place where cheap prices makes the tips correspondingly less. Why should a waitress in a cheap place get a smaller tip than one who serves a more expensive meal in another restaurant? Both work just as hard. As one example, a restaurant I like inside a local casino charges $8 for eggs, bacon, hashbrowns, toast and $2 for coffee - $10 total including tax. I'll leave a $5 or $10 tip depending on the service. A 100% tip may seem excessive until you realize Denny's charges close to $20 (plus tip) for the same breakfast.

It's a documented fact, the reason Texas Roadhouse food prices are as low as they are is because of the waitstaff employees low wages.
That is one restaurant where I always leave a 20% tip-in cash.

 

[Oldgator73]

I always leave at least 20%. If we are at dinner with friends and they insist on paying and I notice the tip is not sufficient I will kick in more ( not in front of them). We always try to leave cash.
Food service is not the only industry where tips may be offered. Military commissaries use baggers that work solely for tips. You usually tip according to how many bags are utilized. Sometimes you get home and find bags with very few items in them. Baggers not only bag your groceries they deliver them to your vehicle and place them in the car.
Valets are tipped. Hairdressers and barbers. Cab, Uber and Lyft drivers. Tour guides. Shuttle drivers are usually tipped. Food and some other home delivery’s are often tipped. We live in a society where many folks rely on tips to supplement the wages they earn. And I would posit the size of the tip is often commiserate to the level of service provided.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

I think these days, they usually split the tips with the others, so your tipping for the lousy as well as good service at the same time.

Depends on the establishment but I don't think tip sharing is more prevalent than not. However, many servers have to "tip out" other staff who may assist them to some degree or another, e.g. a table busser, food runner, or bartender. It's not unusual for 10%-20% of the tip to get paid out to other staff who do not otherwise get tipped.

 

[DutchmenSport]

So? The back of house staff work just as hard as those out front and they contribute just as much to the overall experience. Why shouldn't they share in the tips?

The cooks and back end staff get paid a better salary than the waitresses. About a year ago I asked a waitress at an IHOP (International House of Pancakes) what here salary was. She said it was $1.25 an hour. The waitresses depend upon tips. The cooks got paid (at least) a minimum wage amount, if not more and did not get a share of the tips. This woman was very open with us and answered a lot of questions we threw at her. It turned out, she was having severe personal financial difficulty (not her fault, just a series of things that happened), and her apartment rent was behind. I could not believe all she was telling us.

My wife and I had a little "pow-wow" and when we left, we gave her a $200 tip. She was flabbergasted! (it was cash too), and the waitresses got to keep their own tips. We thanked her for her efforts and gave here a "Merry Christmas, Santa came a little early for you!" She left the table crying!

If the pot would have been a shared endeavor, we would have never done that. AND.... we never leave a tip on the Bank Card as that is almost always shared (and accountable for taxes). We always tip with cash. And we always ask the waitress if it's shared or they keep it all. When they keep it all, we always tip better.

That's just us, and we don't tip like that all the time... just when the "spirit" move us. God has blessed us so we share the blessing with others.

 

[DonTom]

It's not unusual for 10%-20% of the tip to get paid out to other staff who do not otherwise get tipped.

That was what I was saying. Tipping has nothing to do with getting good or bad service in most cases. It makes more sense to increase the price by 20% and force everybody to pay the same amount for their "tips'".

I like the Japan method where they refuse to accept tips and consider tips as an insult.

-Don- Why, AZ

 

[jymbee]

If you've ever waited tables you know it is one of the most stressful and demanding jobs in the world.

I get your point, and yes, waiting can be a stressful job but IMO nowhere near one of the most stressful in the world. For example:

The 12 most stressful jobs in America, according to the people who do them

 

[Mark_K5LXP]

And no more check writing sessions, envelopes, and stamps. No more balancing a checkbook. What a convivence it is to have everything paid automatically

The side of that I don't like is having to create and manage literally dozens of online accounts, with many of those requiring automatic bill pay in place. So what used to be check writing sessions are now online sessions dorking with 2FA, sifting through unique statements and keeping tabs on what gets paid and when. At least with a check there aren't multiple points of access to my account. This construct of 'linked accounts' works great, until it doesn't.

Mark B.
Albuquerque, NM

 

[Brad Buchanan]

I've seen the opposite. 30 years ago charging an extra 3% was common and many people used cash/checks. But not today. Also consider this. Pennies are no longer being minted. Stores may start charging cash customers 4% extra. All cash will eventually become digital.

It is both customers and businesses eliminating cash. What percentage of people want to go inside to pay for gas/diesel with cash? Walmart has a couple dozen self checkout stands and only a couple accept cash.

Stores prefer plastic to cut down on cash theft. I was a restaurant manager back in the 70's. We had to keep the register locked to keep the wait staff from stealing cash. We were held up a few times over the years. Criminals want cash not credit card receipts.

When you do not have cash in the system all your info and purchases are available to the govt. Or whoever they sell it to.

Lose cash and lose freedom.

 

[Brad Buchanan]

Why? They just split the tips in most cases, here in the USA. It all goes into the same pot.

What does tipping have to do with "better service" ? Absolutely NOTHING!:

"Yes, most restaurants split tips to ensure fair compensation for all staff involved in providing service, even if they don’t directly receive tips from customers.

"Common Tip-Splitting Methods​

• Tip Pooling: All tips are collected into a shared pool and distributed among eligible employees based on a set formula (e.g., percentages, points, or hours worked). This is common in full-service restaurants.
• Tip Sharing: Servers voluntarily give a portion of their tips to supporting staff (e.g., 10% to bartenders, 25–30% to bussers, expediters, and hosts).
• Points System: Employees are assigned points based on their role (e.g., servers = 10 points, bussers = 5 points), and the tip pool is divided by total points to determine individual payouts.
• Hours Worked: Pooled tips are divided based on how many hours each server worked, ensuring fairness when shifts vary in length.

Who Gets a Share?​

• Eligible staff typically include bartenders, bussers, food runners, hosts, and captains who provide direct customer service.
• Non-tipped staff like cooks, dishwashers, and managers generally cannot be included in mandatory tip pools under federal law unless the restaurant uses a "tip credit" and complies with state-specific rules. "

That is why you tip that exceptional server in cash.

 

[DonTom]

That is why you tip that exceptional server in cash.

In most cases, they only collect it and are not allowed to keep it for themselves.

-Don- Why, AZ

 

[Brad Buchanan]

In most cases, they only collect it and are not allowed to keep it for themselves.

-Don- Why, AZ

Apparently you don't know many servers.