Anyway, I was a waitress and a good one. At the time, the actual salary (not tips) was about a quarter of minimum wage.
I disliked waiting on women because they were lousy tippers. Men tip well unless they're black. I'm a good tipper, but I also demand service and since I was a waitress I know how to do it well. I worked at enough different places to figure out that franchises are the *safest* place to eat and often the local fancy place is a health nightmare.
Work in restaurants, and you learn things you'd really rather not learn.
Did you know that many restaurants require the wait staff to fork over a percentage of the tips?
I also had several customers "walk their tab"--leave without paying. That was taken out of my salary and I quit on the spot.
I do understand the "entitlement" thing, but realize that if you stiff someone they won't see it that way, especially if they have done a good job.
I understand the entitlement thing because I have recently started to get therapeutic massages and was surprised to discover that on top of the cost I'm expected to hand over another 20%. These are trained professionals who earn more than an RN per hour, and I'm supposed to tip them? But I do.
But anyone who expects a gratuity is no professional.
Maybe the OP gets a per diem, and whatever amount they can avoid paying out by stiffing waiststaff goes into their pocket (and is non-taxeable too, if I'm not mistaken).
Yes it’s a business expense , which means its not my money.