Then the @sshole employer should pay them what they are worth.
Instead they get to advertize that $2.99 steak sandwich and make their profit by stealing the wage of the server and getting the suckers who go in to take advantage of the bargain prices, only to discover that they must pay a toll to the server.
You don't like the pay take it up with the employer. Good luck getting him to raise his price in order to pay you a living wage.
yes, the server and the customer get screwed under this underpaid/mandatory tip setup, and each gets angry at the other, instead of the owner. the guy’s pulling an obama, a deflection, a divide and conquer setup.
Where’s a $2.99 steak sandwich????
I know several people who have not only worked their way through college by waiting tables, but some of which chose to stick with it after graduation because they make decent money (particularly compared to the current job market in their fields). One thing that is common among the handful of servers who make a decent living waiting tables - they take care of their customers. Certainly, they still get stiffed, but they work hard, and treat customers like customers.
I agree that they should be paid AT LEAST minimum wage (except that politicians keep screwing that up too). Still - the system is what it is. So tip your server according to the service provided by that server. It is the system.