I pit my mother for making a scene about being a lousy tipper

[mhendo]

@Don't Call Me Shirley

I think I read somewhere that if you work harder, and do a better job, you should get paid more than someone who doesn’t. The concept had a catchy name, right on the tip of my tongue, I can’t remember what it was, “The Dream of America,” or something like that.

Yeah, right, because the service industry is the only place in the whole economy where hard workers get screwed, and lazy assholes get away with it.

We can hardly go more than a month on these very boards without someone who works in an office or a hospital or some other workplace complaining about some lazy-ass co-worker who always gets away with doing jack shit. If you really believe that everyone apart from tip-pool waitstaff gets paid purely on merit, then i assume you also believe in unicorns and great deals on Florida swampland.

@Don't Call Me Shirley

Everybody gets paid the same no matter how hard they work? Sounds like the godless commies to me.

Wow, i thought the term “godless commies,” at least in its unironic vein, was nowdays only used by senile John Birchers.

Anyway, as i already explained, tip-pool establishments don’t simply allocate all the money equally. In fact, it’s perfectly possible that they allocate the money more fairly, based on overall performance, than you can. For example, if your waiter gives you great service, it’s possible that he is doing so at the expense of the other tables he’s supposed to be taking care of. In that case, it’s in the restaurant’s best interests to pool tips and to make clear to this guy that he has to do ALL of his job properly.

Not only that, but you seem to assume that tipping is the only way to ensure decent service, but that’s just not true. At the place i worked where we pooled tips, two employees were fired for inadequate performance. Believe it or not, managers and owners, even in the tipping culture, keep an eye on who is working and who isn’t. Also, in any tipping environment (pool or no), it’s hard for someone to be a lazy asshole because the other employees will catch on and refuse to help that person. And anyone who has ever worked in the hospitality industry (and i gather that doesn’t include you, given your ignorance on the subject) will tell you that you just can’t do your job at all if other people in the restaurant refuse to help you out.

@Don't Call Me Shirley

As I said, I enjoy giving someone a big tip for excellent service. Tip pools rob me of my enjoyment.

Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!

Suck it up, you fucking baby. You sound like the sort of person who expects the waiter to fall at your feet as you leave the restaurant becuase you’re such an awesome tipper. Get over yourself.

@Don't Call Me Shirley

Sure I can accept that. Those people should be compensated appropriately by the restaurant. The ones that work hard should get raises, the ones that don’t shouldn’t. I see this as a ploy by the restaurant to classify as many employees as possible as “tipped” employees so they can pay them dirt.

But that’s a different argument.

If you want to start a debate about whether tipping (versus higher wages paid by the business) is a good idea, i’d be happy to participate. Personally, i think a problem with the whole tipping system is that it removes the responsibility for paying a decent wage from the employers and thrusts it onto the shoulders of the general public, many of whom are too stupid and/or too tight to care about tipping properly.

But, in North America at least, we do live in a tipping culture, and, having accepted that, it’s pretty silly to ask the restaurant to simply pay more for better employees. And, whether tips are pooled or not, busboys and hostesses and bartenders are already classified as tipped employees, and are treated as such by the IRS. If the employee contributes to the service work performed by the restaurant, why shouldn’t he or she share in the tips? Why should the tip only go to the person who happens to be the point person in the service relationship? As WhyNot says, you really have no idea who’s doing all the work to make your experience a good one. Just because the waiter is the one who sucks up to you and takes your order doesn’t mean other people aren’t contributing.

[Don_t_Call_Me_Shirley]

Yeah, right, because the service industry is the only place in the whole economy where hard workers get screwed, and lazy assholes get away with it.

snip

If you really believe that everyone apart from tip-pool waitstaff gets paid purely on merit, then i assume you also believe in unicorns and great deals on Florida swampland.

Ya know, there is really no need to just repeat everything I already said.

Oh, wait a minute, I never said those things. Dumbass.

Just because it doesn’t always happen doesn’t mean it’s not a good idea, and that we shouldn’t try to do it whenever we can. I don’t even know what the hell you’re trying to convince me of with this strawman crap. That since some people don’t get compensated based on their performance then nobody should? What’s your point?

Wow, i thought the term “godless commies,” at least in its unironic vein, was nowdays only used by senile John Birchers.

Link

Suck it up, you fucking baby. You sound like the sort of person who expects the waiter to fall at your feet as you leave the restaurant becuase you’re such an awesome tipper. Get over yourself.

I have no idea what you’re talking about. The waiter doesn’t know how much I’ve tipped until after I’ve left. If someone did a good job, I want them to be compensated, and not some lazy parasite as described by WhyNot. Is that a character defect?

if your waiter gives you great service, it’s possible that he is doing so at the expense of the other tables he’s supposed to be taking care of. In that case, it’s in the restaurant’s best interests to pool tips and to make clear to this guy that he has to do ALL of his job properly.

No, if that’s the case, then he’ll get shitty tips from the tables he’s neglecting. If the management gets complaints about his poor service it is in their best interest to terminate him or take other appropriate action. I assume that, with most people leaving tips on credit cards, the management can see who consistently gets low tips and could address the situation from that angle as well.

Also, in any tipping environment (pool or no), it’s hard for someone to be a lazy asshole because the other employees will catch on and refuse to help that person. And anyone who has ever worked in the hospitality industry (and i gather that doesn’t include you, given your ignorance on the subject) will tell you that you just can’t do your job at all if other people in the restaurant refuse to help you out.

Good. So how do the other employees feel when the lazy asshole that they refuse to help out gets an equal share of the tip jar?

[mhendo]

@Don't Call Me Shirley

Ya know, there is really no need to just repeat everything I already said.

Oh, wait a minute, I never said those things. Dumbass.

Just because it doesn’t always happen doesn’t mean it’s not a good idea, and that we shouldn’t try to do it whenever we can. I don’t even know what the hell you’re trying to convince me of with this strawman crap. That since some people don’t get compensated based on their performance then nobody should? What’s your point?

My point, which you’re apprently too thick to get, is that, no matter the compensation system, there is always a chance that some people will be unfairly rewarded for the amount of work they do, and some people will get screwed over because of lazy co-workers.

This is the case whether the system is regular tipping, tip pooling, annual salary, whatever.

@Don't Call Me Shirley

Link

Well, when someone uses “The Dream of America” and “godless commies” in consecutive sentences while making a serious argument opposed to tip sharing, you can understand how those comments might be perceived as anything but a joke.

@Don't Call Me Shirley

I have no idea what you’re talking about. The waiter doesn’t know how much I’ve tipped until after I’ve left.

Actually, in many places the credit card slip or whatever is, in fact, picked up before the person leaves the restaurant. Anyhow, i was merely commenting on your obsession with your own need to feel good about your tipping, which seemed completely unrelated to any real concern about the staff.

@Don't Call Me Shirley

If someone did a good job, I want them to be compensated, and not some lazy parasite as described by WhyNot. Is that a character defect?

No, but your whole attitude in this thread has been to assume that if you don’t see someone do something specifically for you, then that person musn’t deserve a share of the tips. I’m merely pointing out that this attitude can only be the result of ignorance about how restaurant staff actually work with one another.

@Don't Call Me Shirley

No, if that’s the case, then he’ll get shitty tips from the tables he’s neglecting.

Maybe, or maybe other more professional waiters will cover for him so the customers still have a good experience. I’ve seen it happen.

@Don't Call Me Shirley

If the management gets complaints about his poor service it is in their best interest to terminate him or take other appropriate action. I assume that, with most people leaving tips on credit cards, the management can see who consistently gets low tips and could address the situation from that angle as well.

Sure, management will terminate someone who consistently performs poorly. But don’t you see that you’re undermining your own argument here? Because management can fire a poor performer whether the tips are pooled or not.

@Don't Call Me Shirley

Good. So how do the other employees feel when the lazy asshole that they refuse to help out gets an equal share of the tip jar?

They feel the same as any employee who has to pick up the slack left by a lazy-ass co-worker. Again, this is not unique to the service industry. And also, as you’ve already pointed out, if someone is lazy, management can fire them.

Your whole argument seems to revolve around the assumption that waiters only give good service because they are getting tips. It’s simply not true. I’ve made this argument a bunch of times before on these boards, so i’ll say what i’ve said previously: I’ve been on both sides of the fence—waiter and customer—in tipping and non-tipping environments, i can honestly say that the service i receive at restaurants in the US and Canada is, on average, no better and no worse than the service i receive in restaurants in Australia and England. And, in all of those places, i knew waiters who were lazy bastards, and waiters who were hard-working professionals.

[Kalhoun]

@pulykamell

Damn straight. Half the time I think the bus boys deserve more of the tip than the wait staff.

The restaurant industry is weird. Why should I value the service of a waiter more than the bus boy or the chef? I know being a wait person is a hard job, but so are a zillion other jobs with people you don’t tip. How 'bout the chef? I wish I could tip the chef for serving me my steak exactly as I ordered (since most places don’t) And, when it comes down to per-hour earnings, I sincerely doubt most chefs make more than the average waitron, yet I’d argue they work harder.

Just my thoughts. And, yes, I have worked in the service industry. I’d rather be a server than work in the kitchen any day.

On top of that, I frequently ask the bus boy to send my inattentive waitperson to the table to refill drinks or what have you.

[Monty]

@The Swan

That is false. Regardless, you are splitting hairs.

Really? How is it false that the government mandates the employer pay a certain minimum wage for one group of people and another minimum wage for another group of people?

Or were you referring to my assertion that it’s illegal to pay someone less than the minimum wage? If so, I’d dearly love to see the law that says, “Mr./Ms. Employer, you may pay as little as you wish regardless of the stated minumum wage.”

[Don_t_Call_Me_Shirley]

My point, which you’re apprently too thick to get, is that, no matter the compensation system, there is always a chance that some people will be unfairly rewarded for the amount of work they do, and some people will get screwed over because of lazy co-workers.

Oh, now I see the problem. Now I understand where our sticking point is. You’re not reading my fucking posts. Because I already made this point, that I’m apparently too think to get: In post 120 I said “Every method, ISTM, disregards the contributions of some group or unjustly rewards laziness.” Your method of restating what I’ve already said and then pretending I can’t understand it is quite clever. I must admit it almost fooled me. (Another joke.)

This is the case whether the system is regular tipping, tip pooling, annual salary, whatever.

Right. And I said that, IMO, the “everybody keeps their own tips” system was fairest. And as I recall, (since I actually read your fucking posts!) you said that you prefer the “everybody keeps their own tips” system too. So what’s the argument?

Well, when someone uses “The Dream of America” and “godless commies” in consecutive sentences while making a serious argument opposed to tip sharing, you can understand how those comments might be perceived as anything but a joke.

No, I thought it was pretty obviously a joke. However, I’m not going to quibble, since in this case I’m just happy you actually read the fucking post, or at least two sentences of it.

Actually, in many places the credit card slip or whatever is, in fact, picked up before the person leaves the restaurant. Anyhow, i was merely commenting on your obsession with your own need to feel good about your tipping, which seemed completely unrelated to any real concern about the staff.

Not anyplace that I’ve ever been. But then I always wait until right before I leave to sign it. And how do you know I have no concern for the staff?

No, but your whole attitude in this thread has been to assume that if you don’t see someone do something specifically for you, then that person musn’t deserve a share of the tips. I’m merely pointing out that this attitude can only be the result of ignorance about how restaurant staff actually work with one another.

And we’re right back to where we started, with you not reading my fucking posts. Why am I even bothering? Are you reading this? I started off with that attitude, but I changed my mind. Post 120: “OK, I’ll concede half the point, and give you that in some instances the busboys and other support staff deserve some of the tips, if they are making the wait staff look good” The half point I conceded was that busboys may deserve a portion of the tips, because others corrected my ignorance on the various tasks of busboys (and, if you read their fucking posts, you would notice that they corrected my ignorance very nicely, and didn’t even call me a single name.) The other half of my point was that tip pooling rewarded laziness and robbed me of the satisfaction of paying a good waitron a compliment where it counts (in their wallet.) That is what I have confined my argument to since conceding that busboys should maybe be cut in on the tips. But you obviously have not read my fucking posts.

Sure, management will terminate someone who consistently performs poorly. But don’t you see that you’re undermining your own argument here? Because management can fire a poor performer whether the tips are pooled or not.

No, I’m not undermining my argument. My argument is that tip pooling rewards laziness. Up until the time they are fired they get an unfair portion of the tips. So it’s not fair.

They feel the same as any employee who has to pick up the slack left by a lazy-ass co-worker. Again, this is not unique to the service industry. And also, as you’ve already pointed out, if someone is lazy, management can fire them.

Once again, I’m baffled by this argument. People in other industries have to pick up slack for lazy people, so therefore we should make the restaurant business the same? Rewarding lazy people at the expense of hard workers is not fair no matter where it happens. But in the restaurant business, we have a built-in safeguard against it, for some of the employees, anyway. A system that I think is more fair. The harder workers get more reward. That’s a good system. We can’t implement it across the board, unfortunately, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t implement it when we can.

Your whole argument seems to revolve around the assumption that waiters only give good service because they are getting tips.

No, my argument revolves around the fact that if a waiter gives me good service, I want to give him a good tip, and not subsidize a lazy moocher at the same time.

[The_Swan]

@Monty

Really? How is it false that the government mandates the employer pay a certain minimum wage for one group of people and another minimum wage for another group of people?
"

You’re still splitting hairs in a rather tedious way. You know good and goddamned well that there are two wages, but you decided to tell me that I was “braeaking the law” when you knew good and well that I wasn’t. I decided to play your stupid little game by pointing out that there is only one “minimum wage” that is titled as such.

[Mtgman]

@The Swan

I sure as hell expected customers to tip for good service. I also expected the servers to provide good service. However, the idea that a server might be stiffed for awful service once in a blue moon does not lead one to conclude that the restaurant needs to increase their wages.

A server who provides awful service can not be “stiffed”. They either get what they deserve, nothing at all, or more than they deserve, anything at all. In no way can it be considered “stiffing” a server by refusing to tip for awful service.

Enjoy,
Steven

[Monty]

@The Swan

You’re still splitting hairs in a rather tedious way. You know good and goddamned well that there are two wages, but you decided to tell me that I was “braeaking the law” when you knew good and well that I wasn’t.

All I know is what you typed. You said something about paying less than minimum wage. If it’s legal to pay less, then it’ s not a minimum, now is it?

I decided to play your stupid little game by pointing out that there is only one “minimum wage” that is titled as such.

No kidding. However, the nifty little poster the government required the restaurant where I worked to post had two levels of minumum wage on it. There was one for those who relied on tips and one for those who didn’t rely on tips. Nowhere was there anything that permitted the employer to play less than the legal minimum wage.

And you really should temper your language some. The posting alone already shows you to be a jerk, no need to curse for that effect.

[The_Swan]

@Monty

All I know is what you typed. You said something about paying less than minimum wage. If it’s legal to pay less, then it’ s not a minimum, now is it?
No kidding. However, the nifty little poster the government required the restaurant where I worked to post had two levels of minumum wage on it. There was one for those who relied on tips and one for those who didn’t rely on tips. Nowhere was there anything that permitted the employer to play less than the legal minimum wage.

And you really should temper your language some. The posting alone already shows you to be a jerk, no need to curse for that effect.

Let me get this straight. You put up a post with the sole intent of splitting hairs, and I’m the jerk? Dag Otto knew what I was talking about (evidenced by his same use of the term "minimum wage), everyone else in the thread knew what he and I were talking about, and my fucking couch cusions knew what we were talking about. Yet, you’re the only one who needs clarification. To top it all off, you puff out your moderator chest by needlessly telling me to temper my language in the pit.

Yeah. I’m the jerk.

[The_Swan]

@The Swan

Let me get this straight. You put up a post with the sole intent of splitting hairs, and I’m the jerk? Dag Otto knew what I was talking about (evidenced by his same use of the term "minimum wage), everyone else in the thread knew what he and I were talking about, and my fucking couch cusions knew what we were talking about. Yet, you’re the only one who needs clarification. To top it all off, you puff out your moderator chest by needlessly telling me to temper my language in the pit.

Yeah. I’m the jerk.

“cushions”

[Jodi]

AFAIK, MONTY, isn’t a moderator. The “SDSAB” under his name stands for “Straight Dope Scientific Advisory Board,” meaning he’s written or contributed information for a Staff Report or other question.

A person might say someone else is being a jerk, even in the Pit, if the second person calls the first a poopie-head. Just because one poster calls another a jerk doesn’t mean the Board rule “don’t be a jerk” is being innvoked, and just because a SDSAB or mod calls you a jerk doesn’t mean you’re being admonished or moderated. Mods usually are very clear as to when they are moderating as opposed to just posting in their individual capacity, which they of course have every right to do.

[mhendo]

@Don't Call Me Shirley

Oh, now I see the problem. Now I understand where our sticking point is. You’re not reading my fucking posts.

You are, for one of the first times in this thread, completely correct about this. I didn’t read your post #120 because i didn’t see it.

That post was posted at 4.07 pm yesterday, exactly the same time as my post #121, so when i posted #121, i missed your #120.

Then, when i got the next email notification for this thread, the link took me straight to your post #122.

This happens periodically on these boards, when posts follow in quick succession. So, to the extent that i misprepresented your argument due to not reading your post #120, i apologize and retract those parts of my argument.

I still think you’re whining unnecessarily about something that really isn’t your concern or your problem. If you get good service, and give a tip commensurate with that service, it’s no skin off your nose if the restaurant has some sort of sharing or pooling system. What if all the waiters at the place, even the best ones, are happy with the arrangement? Who are you to tell them they should do it differently?

@Don't Call Me Shirley

Once again, I’m baffled by this argument. People in other industries have to pick up slack for lazy people, so therefore we should make the restaurant business the same? Rewarding lazy people at the expense of hard workers is not fair no matter where it happens. But in the restaurant business, we have a built-in safeguard against it, for some of the employees, anyway. A system that I think is more fair. The harder workers get more reward. That’s a good system. We can’t implement it across the board, unfortunately, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t implement it when we can.

I don’t know what you do for a living, but i presume you don’t work for tips. What would your reaction be if you had a bad day and were a little less porductive or less cheerful than normal, and your boss called you in and said, “Well, that wasn’t your best day, was it? Your paycheck is going to be $120 lighter this week.”? Would you support a system where your paycheck was, every single day, determined only by your performance on that particular day, with no account taken for your overall abilities or work ethic?

The fact is that waiting and other tipped enterprises do allow reward for good service, but they also allow much less tolerance for inconsistency than just about any other type of job. In just about any occupation or profession, even the best and most professional people can have a bad day, a day on which they’re just not up to their usual standard. The difference is, if you’re an office worker or a doctor or a cop or whatever, that you can have a few bad days, and as long as you’re a good worker overall, you suffer no penalty. That’s why, unless a waiter is actually rude or completely absent, i generally don’t stiff them on the tip. If their performance is a little below expectations, i’m not going to automatically assume that they’re a lazy asshole. They could just be having a shitty day, for whatever reason.

[The_Swan]

@Jodi

AFAIK, MONTY, isn’t a moderator. The “SDSAB” under his name stands for “Straight Dope Scientific Advisory Board,” meaning he’s written or contributed information for a Staff Report or other question.

A person might say someone else is being a jerk, even in the Pit, if the second person calls the first a poopie-head. Just because one poster calls another a jerk doesn’t mean the Board rule “don’t be a jerk” is being innvoked, and just because a SDSAB or mod calls you a jerk doesn’t mean you’re being admonished or moderated. Mods usually are very clear as to when they are moderating as opposed to just posting in their individual capacity, which they of course have every right to do.

Fair enough (regarding the SDSAB portion), but I never thought s/he was invoking the “don’t be a jerk” rule. It was the “you need to” statement that I found a little unnecessary, especially in the pit. That whole part doesn’t really concern me much, anyway.

[Don_t_Call_Me_Shirley]

This happens periodically on these boards, when posts follow in quick succession. So, to the extent that i misprepresented your argument due to not reading your post #120, i apologize and retract those parts of my argument.

I understand now. No problem.

I don’t know what you do for a living, but i presume you don’t work for tips. What would your reaction be if you had a bad day and were a little less porductive or less cheerful than normal, and your boss called you in and said, “Well, that wasn’t your best day, was it? Your paycheck is going to be $120 lighter this week.”? Would you support a system where your paycheck was, every single day, determined only by your performance on that particular day, with no account taken for your overall abilities or work ethic?

I don’t think this is a very good comparison. Yes, everybody is going to have a bad day now and then. Some people will have a lot more than others. I’m not judged on a daily basis, but my boss audits my cases every year and if he finds mistakes I won’t get as much of a raise as a coworker with fewer mistakes (with fewer mistakes over the year implying that he had fewer “bad” days than I did). So it will even out over time. Likewise, with the tip system, waiters will have good days and bad days, and their tips will (ideally) reflect that, with waiters who have a higher percentage of good days making more than waiters with a higher percentage of bad days. And I think that’s fair. It evens out over time, just like with me. With the pool the guy who has one bad day a month makes the same as the guy who has 10 bad days a month.

What I don’t get is why a guy who already stated that he prefers the “keep your own tips” system is getting so worked up over someone who also prefers the “keep your own tips” system. Is it my perceived attitude, implied by my statements that I enjoy giving a big tip to someone who does a good job? Is that selfish of me? Perhaps. But who gets hurt? I have a nice time at dinner, the good waiter gets a big tip, I feel good. Everyone wins. Except the lazy mooch waiter. Unless there’s a pool system, and then he wins too.

Also, I’m not sure if you missed it, but I stated earlier that I almost always get excellent service, and therefore leave a big tip. I can’t remember the last time I was unhappy with a waiter. So I’m not one of those guys (and I know people like this) who start at 15% and knock off a percentage point for every little oversight, like letting a drink get below 1/3 full or something, and who believe that the waiter should be thrilled to get the 8% he ended up with, or whatever.

[Nava]

@stpauler

As horrible it is that she didn’t tip well, why the hell is the manager asking the customer about not leaving a tip?

If the “not leaving a tip” is on purpose, one should let the place know where did they fail. They can’t improve otherwise. The manager knew that it was possible for these people to have forgotten the tip (most europeans forget it, since we’re not used to it); if there was a reason for not leaving it, explaining it calmly would have been helpful.

In Spain I don’t usually leave tips, since they’re left only for “outstanding service” - service and tax are included in the price already. In the US, apart of needing a calculator to figure out how much will the meal cost, I leave a tip unless the service blew goats.

[tashabot]

While I agree that $10 is a crap tip, the manager is a prick for demanding that she leave a tip. Tips ARE optional, and as much as I loathe small tippers, if I’d been in your moms place I’d have thrown a fit, too.

If it’s a mandatory tip, they should have a sign posted and add it in themselves.

~Tasha

[Kolak_of_Twilo]

I have watched this thread go on for a while and finally have reached a place where I have to make several points. I have worked in this business now for 18 years. I started as a food runner, then a backwaiter, a waiter (or server), then in various degrees of management. For the last 4 years I have been GM of a very successful and busy restaurant in Chicago. There are several points I would like to make.

[ol]
[li]In the state of Illinois, tipped employees must be paid at least $3.90 an hour. This is in accordance with federal law concerning minimum wage. Most establisments pay this rate to servers and a higher rate to people like bartenders and bussers because they (as a rule) recieve a smaller share of the nightly tips.[/li][li]Under NO CIRCUMSTANCES would it be appropriate for me, any other manager or employee to approach a customer and in any way question the amount of the tip. NEVER. [/li]To do so will (and IMHO should) lead to immediate termination of employment.
[/ol]
I realize #2 above sounds harsh but, if you work as a server you have basically made a choice to gamble regarding how much you will make each shift. Some people will be cheap and some will be generous in regard to tipping. My staff certainly bitches to me when they get a cheap tipper in their section. Usually, they are the folks who are the most demanding and run you around in circles. But, in the end if you are a truly professional server it all balances out. I was a server for a long time before I noticed that most of my customers were in fact very appreciative of the service they received and tipped accordingly. That doesn’t diminsh how aggravating it is to get a shitty tip. It truly sucks. The only way I kept my sanity in those situations was to let it go, move on and see to it that the next few tables loved me so much they left a great tip. And in the end that is how you have to view it if you stay in this business for any length of time. I am fortunate enough to have a staff of professional servers who understand this. Most of them have been doing this job for an average of 8-10 years. They understand the crapshoot nature of the business.

And it is NEVER appropriate to confront a customer about a shitty tip. At most you might swing by and ask “How was everything tonight?” because a bad tip may indicate that there were problems you need to know about. But, any manager who ever mentions anything about the size of the tip is totally unprofessional.

That’s a fact, Jack.

[auntie_em]

@Don't Call Me Shirley

This whole tip pool thing is getting me really pissed off. Are there any benefits to it? I can’t think of any.

I never worked at a place with a tip pool, and so don’t really get it, either, but one thing it might eliminate is waitstaff resentment towards the host/hostess. I mean, most hosts try to keep track of which parties get seated where, to avoid (a) slamming one particular server, and (b) short-changing another server. So if one server just got a large party of happy people who are all ordering multiple cocktails, appetizers, and the filet mignon, then the host might lay off that server’s section for awhile, so that the server can take good care of that party, and so that other servers get a chance to rake in comparable tips.

However, what sometimes happens is that a party will get seated in a place they don’t want, look over and see an empty booth in another section, and say, “Hey - can we sit THERE?” And of course they do. And then the servers complain about inequity. But if everyone knows that at the end of the night, each person is going home with an equal share of beer money, then maybe that doesn’t happen . . . ?

Just a guess.

[mhendo]

@Kolak of Twilo

My staff certainly bitches to me when they get a cheap tipper in their section. Usually, they are the folks who are the most demanding and run you around in circles.

The way you’ve written this suggests that you have repeat customers who are poor tippers.

You have made clear that you are opposed to approaching a customer about poor tipping. What is your attitude if a waiter, on a very busy night, chooses to give more attention and better service to the tables that are likely to tip better, and less attention to someone known to be a poor tipper?