Posted on 01/07/2009 9:58:14 AM PST by ex-Texan
Servers suffer as gratuities, and their incomes, plummet with the economy
Nobody is sitting at the rack at Mary’s Club on a Friday afternoon.
The rack is the counter that lines the stage at Mary’s, an institution among Portland strip clubs, at 129 S.W. Broadway Ave. Customers who sit at the rack, up close to the dancers, are expected to tip dollar bills or more throughout the performances.
In fact, there’s a sign in Mary’s Club that reads, “If you’re watching and not tipping, you’re stealing.”
But it’s easier to watch and not tip from seats further back or at the bar off to the side. Same view, not as close, and customers don’t feel quite as guilty about ignoring the sign.
And that, the dancers at Mary’s Club and other dancers say, is what is increasingly happening as the recession deepens.
In fact, as money gets tighter, all sorts of workers who are dependent on tips to pay their rents and put groceries on the table are suffering, big time.
At Joe’s Cellar, at 1332 N.W. 21st Ave., a decidedly neighborhood diner, waitress Dianna Johs is just barely scraping by on her minimum wage and tips. On a recent Monday, she tallied her sales at the end of the shift, $143, and said her take-home pay from tips would amount to $15 for the day.
Two years ago, Johs says, her average tip was 15 percent to 20 percent of the bill. Today it’s closer to 10 percent, she says, and she’s thankful that she’s got neighborhood regulars as customers, who she knows are tipping as much as they can.
But even the regulars are more frequently ordering dinner without a drink, saving money and cutting down on the overall bill — and on Johs’ tip. The people we don’t know
Waiters at other restaurants report that lower tips are the least of their problems; the recession has meant a cut in shifts for many, and fewer customers once they do get a shift.
Dancers don’t have it much better. In fact, they may have it worse. Dancers at Mary’s Club and other clubs report that their tips are about half what they were a year or two ago. And tips are the only income the dancers receive. Because they are hired as independent contractors, dancers don’t receive the minimum wage waiters and waitresses get.
“I could almost collect food stamps,” says dark-haired dancer Satori, adding that just a year ago she made a much better living. Some dancers, especially at neighborhood strip clubs, which appear to be losing business faster than downtown venues that can still rely on hotel customers, report they are heading home with as little as $20 for a night’s work.
Beth Hansen says that, until this year, men sitting at the rack on average would give her two or three dollars for each song to which she danced. Now, even when she can get customers to sit up close, the tip is usually a dollar a song.
“You hear a lot more people say, ‘I’m really broke now,’ ” Hansen says.
Kit Yarrow, a professor of consumer psychology at Golden Gate University in San Francisco who studies the psychology of tipping, keeps a database of people in the service industries. She says that service providers nationwide are reporting a steep decline in their incomes.
“I was wondering if wealthy people that have that extra little income would maybe feel a little extra compassion and leave even bigger tips,” Yarrow says. “It’s not happening.”
The only servers who appear to be still getting the tips they once did are those who have established personal relationships with their customers, according to Yarrow. A housekeeper who comes into clean a house weekly, or the family dog walker, are examples, Yarrow says.
The ones suffering the worst, Yarrow says, are “the people we don’t know.” The best example, she says, is hotel housekeepers. Most people know they are supposed to leave money in a hotel room on checkout, but it’s so easily skipped when the service provider is anonymous.
“The psychology of tipping requires that you feel a connection to the server,” Yarrow says. “We like to think elves made up the room.”
Bartenders appear able to establish the type of relationship that makes it hard for customers to eliminate tips. A number of local bartenders report that their tips appear to be holding steady, and a few are reporting an increase in business.
Of course, there is another factor at work in bars. “Any time people are under the influence, that usually works in favor of the server,” Yarrow notes. A ‘little bit of recognition’
At Bishops Barbershop on Northwest 21st Avenue, Veronica Green and most of her coworkers agree that tips are about half of what they were a year ago.
A $21 haircut used to yield a $4 tip on average for an even $25, Green says. Sometimes it still does, but not always.
Some customers, Green reports, have been walking away without tipping at all. “Sometimes they’ll say, ‘Oh, did your prices go up?’ A lot of people are acting apologetic; they’ll act a little squeamish. Almost embarrassed.”
A number of downtown hotel doormen report lower tips. But Marshall Tipton, who has served as a doorman at the Benson Hotel on Southwest Broadway Avenue for eight years, says his income is holding steady, Tipton says he often will receive a five dollar bill for getting a cab and taking bags to a car.
But there’s more to it than that, Tipton says. A number of the people checking in and out of the Benson, he says, are weekly or monthly regulars. They’ve come to know him, and Tipton makes sure, if possible, he has at least a short conversation with them, and shows he remembers them.
“That little bit of recognition goes a long way, so you don’t feel like a stranger in a strange town,” Tipton says.
Beth Hansen, from Mary’s Club, has learned first hand what Yarrow says about establishing a relationship.
“Right now, it definitely pays more to be chatty with people,” the dancer says. “Before you could get up on stage and just do a big show. Now you need to do a big show and be chatty.”
Mary's Club is a watering hole in downtown Portland. It is famous all over the U.S. for it's totally nude dancers. In more prosperous times it has been filled with Japanese tourists and bent locals looking for something 'exotic.' Methinks the author may have been looking for an easy way to pad his expense account. Just joking, people. LOL, LOL ! Local editors would never accept $ 50 in expenses logged up at a nudie bar.
The meat of the article is more interesting:
"Servers suffer as gratuities, and their incomes, plummet with the economy"
I have friends in the restaurant biz. They are all hurting. I went out last evening to a great place I treat myself to regularly. The China Moon. Sometimes I eat there three days a week. Last night it was nearly deserted. Only a few tables had people enjoying fine Asian cuisine. I made it a point to leave a 20% tip.
The whole economy is going into the dumpster. Obama has his work cut out for him. Full scale economic warfare is going on. Nobody wants to address the issue. Not Bush. Not Paulson. Not Bernanke.
Russia vs. U.S. vs. China. Secret wars are going on and we are right in the middle of it. Take a peek here
Later, Alligators . . .
Hey, welcome back. Haven’t seen you much around these parts since you were proved right by the real estate meltdown.
“Methinks the author may have been looking for an easy way to pad his expense account. Just joking, people. LOL, LOL ! Local editors would never accept $ 50 in expenses logged up at a nudie bar.”
It’s probably not THAT far-fetched. My boss says back in his days as an outside salesman he did expense at least one lap dance. But it appeared on his expense report as “client entertainment”.
In fact, there’s a sign in Mary’s Club that reads, “If you’re watching and not tipping, you’re stealing.”
To that I’d say “if you strip and expect a tip, you’re whoring”!
Obama’s fault.
That feels so good.
‘...But even the regulars are more frequently ordering dinner without a drink, saving money and cutting down on the overall bill — and on Johs’ tip.’
My wife and I adopted two adolescent children from Ukraine in 2006, which makes six for dinner when our college age daughter is home. Ordering water saves ~ $12.00 off the bill for softdrinks or tea, that adds up over time very quickly. I still try to tip 15% minimum but the service has to be there. If we have to ask more than once or wait a long time, that tip % goes down. The percentage of the tip is anchored to a basic level of service expectation.
We do try specifically now to only patronize locally owned restaurants. I want them to be around when this thing ends, and it will end eventually. As far as the chains, they will have to rely on travelers or others not emotionally tied to our area.
If they are stealing, call the cops.
This is a lie.
Door charge, $6 beers, it all goes to paying for the show.
If you work the cash register at a coffee shop chain and have a "tip jar" you are whoring too.
Well, this explains a lot for a Vegas guy like me. I thought my G-string wasn’t filling up as fast as before because there was something wrong with me. Now I know it’s just the economy. Whew, that’s a relief.
I also try to leave a 20% tip, because I know there are people who stiff their wait staff all the time.
I only tip maids when I have more than a one night stay somewhere, then it’s $ 2 /night.
And if there is a serviceman eating in the dining room, well, they should never be paying for their meal.
Did you see how she snatched up the tip?...
At the bottom rung of the strip joint trade, the dancers have to PAY the venue each hour they are there (or that they take off early from their "schedule"). If they get stuck with the hours that no customers come in, the club is still making money off of them.
A dollar, but the smog strangler says I'm cheap.
Baggage handlers, 50 cents, but for some reason my baggage always has a leia on it when it finally arrives.
I tip about the same — though my bags usually have a tag from Pitcairn Island.
Haven’t seen you much around these parts since you were proved right by the real estate meltdown . . .Thanks for your comment durasell. But i grew weary of all the sniping from idiots up to no good. Not the whole world knows the truth. Sitting on the sidelines is very entertaining at times. No need for me to blow my own horn.
Now my latest campaign is to educate the masses about the economic war going on out there. Russia is bullying the EU with oil and natural gas. The U.S. is playing hardball with Putin via oil prices. The Russkie stock market is collapsing and has been going downhill rapidly. China is in a mess because people no longer want to buy garbage made in Asia. Especially food sabotaged by organized crime and packaged by slave labor. Americans are caught right in the middle of everything.
And our 'leaders' remain silent. They seem to be saying: 'Nothing to see here. Time to move on.'
In fact, there’s a sign in Mary’s Club that reads, “If you’re watching and not tipping, you’re stealing.”
I don’t really have a great deal of sympathy for these girls. On the good shifts, they can make a lot of $$. They should learn to save for a rainy day.
Seems like global business as usual. Been going on since Spain, England and Holland decided big ships were a good idea.
I usually leave 3-5 bucks a day...typically closer to 5...and pay at the end of the stay.
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