The “parasites” are the owners whining this refrain:
“Oh, our business is different. We can’t make money if we have to (pay overtime, pay a minimum wage, allow a forty-hour work week, pay the interns)!”
You hear it from the restaurant industry. Construction. The entertainment industry (my business).
And the answer back should always be: “No, your business is not different. If you can’t make money following labor laws, then you should go out of business.”
Wage and workweek laws only created the most prosperous, largest middle class with the best quality of life the world has ever seen. That’s all.
I agree completely.. The owners in this case are gluttons, literally stealing from their own struggling employees.. I also fault the unions for their own complicity in allowing the employer to fund the wages out of the tip jar, so they can get the average income higher than the hourly pay..
In the past, we would pay a very fair wage, considering the standard tip at 10%-15%, which varies depending on the quality of the dining experience.. Thus, the higher average check, the greater the tip, the higher the level of experience expected of the staff.. I had table Captains making in excess of $100,000 a year, most of it in cash..