Posted on 04/25/2013 9:01:40 AM PDT by Responsibility2nd
(Newser) – Many waiters are still waiting for their minimum wage to rise—which it hasn't in more than two decades. The federal minimum for servers is set at $2.13 an hour, though if they don't make at least the regular minimum of $7.25 when tips are added in, employers are supposed to make up the difference. That doesn't always happen, a waitress tells Bloomberg. She saw her wages plummet when she moved from California, which has a state minimum of $6.75, to New Mexico, which is one of 13 states to use the federal minimum.
President Obama has called for an increase in the tipped minimum, and things could change if Congress takes action on legislation this year. A bill introduced last month would boost the figure to $3 and eventually to 70% of the full minimum wage, which itself would rise to $10.10 by 2015. But some business owners and economists fear a wage boost could prompt cuts to jobs and hours, and House Republicans aren't likely to support the idea, says a former Bush administration official.
That explains the nationwide shortage of waitstaff in America.
/s
And surly behavior
If you’re not making a good wage as a waiter, you’re likely not a very good waiter.
Most waiters, and waitresses, make far more than a minimal day’s wage in their four hour shifts.
I hate to sound petty, but don’t the tips go up as the prices on the menus go up? Isn’t that kinda’ a raise?
I understand (and if true I disapprove) that restaurants are forced by the IRS to pool tips to keep waitstaff from evading taxes on them, which if true, defies the very purpose of tipping and introduces collectivism into the tip distribution. Evil.
If their salary goes up to 70% of minimum wage then does that mean I get to tip 30% of what I used to?
Yeah, I had some idiot woman who was scandalized because here we were still tipping 15% or 20% just like we were two decades ago and look how much everything's gone up in that time! I think she did actually understand the concept of percentages by the time I was done. Have no idea if it stuck or not.
Unless you get customers like that jerk pastor who stated he didn’t need to give a tip since he already gives 10% to God.
Servers need tips just to get to minimum wage (they still have to pay taxes on those tips later). I agree, bad servers won’t get anything and rightly so they shouldn’t. Unfortunately, there are more cheap idiots who don’t give servers what they deserve than bad servers so that when servers complain about wages and tips, I side with them.
And if you’re not making a good wage as a waiter, perhaps you should have stayed in school and learned a trade or skill that pays a living wage.
There may be professional waiters and waitresses that make more than college educated folks, but for the most part, waiting is an entry level job. Something you do while going to school, or something to do until a real job comes along.
Gotta’ have a sense of humor as a waitress . . . When they go to seat me, I always ask for a table near a waitress. They love that.
And, if the soups of the day are chicken soup and pea soup, I always ask for the chicken soup . . . pause . . . and then ask the waitress if she could hold the chicken and make it pea.
Or, I’ll say, “Instead of a tip, howzabout’ my wife helps clear the table?”
Get some good laughs out of that one. No wonder my wife doesn’t like to go to restaurants with me.
That may depend on the hours they work and the location of the restaurant. If they work weekdays in a restaurant that isn't busy at that time because it's not close to business offices and the like, then they likely do not.
Of course, if that doesn't suit them, they can always try to switch hours or find another job.
It appears that the food service business model is shifting away from wait staff to counter service or self-service. Perhaps government should let the market figure this out. I suspect that the waitress will go the way of the secretary.
Whaaaa? Because following Jesus means being a skinflint, you know. Wasn't he the guy that turned wine into water?
If they raise the tip minimum wage then it relieves consumers of the responsibilty to tip for good service. If the servers’ wage no longer depends upon their perfromance then why should we pay them extra for doing what they are being paid to do anyway?
Talking to waitresses some things I’ve been told:
-If you are working at a high-end four-star place or Ruth’s Chris or something you can indeed make a very good living on tips. Not so much at the lower end (Dennys, IHOP, etc.)
-That goes double if you work the third-shift in a place that is open all night. Drunks are notoriously lousy tippers.
-The population is aging and seniors tend to be lousy tippers (they’re stuck in the days when 25 cents was considered a decent tip)
-More immigrants coming from cultures where tipping is not the norm....and they don’t.
-Growing numbers of people who watch these “Restaurant: Impossible” shows all think they are Gordon Ramsay, lay down tons of criticism and don’t tip as a way of showing their displeasure (even when it has absolutely nothing to do with the waitstaff)
Still tons of grammar errors. Aren’t any of these places looking for proofreaders? I can work for 12 hours minimum if I’m at home.
My 19 year old college-attending granddaughter works at a restaurant/sports bar in Texas. Working Friday night, Saturday night, and Sunday afternoon, $800 weekends are not unusual, and never less than $500.
And they do not share tips.
As far as the IRS, a minimum of 8% of the waiters receipts are reported as income.
Back in my days of waiting tables, payday meant absolutely nothing. Even got checks in the red on occasion. Trust me...I didn’t mind at all.
Depends on the restuarant. Waffle House is probably a lot different than Olive Garden.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.