That story is better if it ends with you making a run for it because you didn't have any money.

After him asking the second time to look at the menu, I would leave and tell him exactly why I am leaving. If I go out to eat, it is never for the food, but for the nice experience. And if it starts this way..... And I do tip pretty good (in Europe it is completely different culture of tipping), IF the waiter manages to give me the feeling, that he cares and tries to make me feel good/comfortable/welcome.

Thread request: when asking a tipping etiquette question, please at least post the country you're in.

You should go out for the food.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sour...-ZbjZwAPNxyLog

Hopefully this is becoming a trend. Fun fact, I found this on my phone by searching for "tipping eld"

Not sure how that will work out for them. Who is going to work at Joe's for $14 an hour when they can work at a similar place and net a good amount more. Seems to me that no decent waiter will work for them.

according to google waiters make like 11 bucks an hour

according to every waiter i've heard talk about it they make about 3

Chain restaurants are where you go to start your service career. No matter your experience, they usually give you a week of training and then a probationary period.

$14 an hour is pretty good for entry level and if you're worth anything, you'll be in line for regular raises.

Na man. Skilled waiters at good restaurants make like $200 a night.

Idk maybe at a crappy diner in a flyover state they make 11 an hour. Around here a typical Saturday night shift at a typical chain would get a waiter ~$200, most of which in cash so you don't need to pay taxes on at least a portion of it. Here you're paying taxes on all of it. I guess for garbage shifts like Tuesday lunch or something 14 an hour might be close to breaking even after taxes, but even that's unlikely for a good location.

Just no reason for anyone to do work for $14 an hour fully taxed when you can get paid more elsewhere here. Not to mention I'm guessing you don't get paid daily in cash as a $14/hr salaried employee so that's another benefit lost.

They still need to pay taxes on all of it even if its generate through cash tips. Just because most waiters commit a federal crime by not declaring all their wages doesn't mean that they don't need to pay them or aren't required to pay them.

Where did I say they aren't legally required to pay taxes on earned income?

Yes, I am aware tax fraud is illegal. That doesn't change the fact that not declaring at least a portion of cash tips is quite common (probably done by a huge majority of tipped employees), and can be done easily by working somewhere else. Just being realistic about what will actually happen.

Didn't even think of it initially but the lack of daily cash payment would be an issue for anyone with experience too.

Zero chance of getting caught + everyone else does it = don't need to pay them.

You said they didn't need to pay them. Even if they don't pay them they still need to pay them.

There is not a 0 chance of getting caught. In fact, I am pretty sure the IRS could put forth a pretty solid case on anyone who isn't reporting a large portion of their cash tips if they wanted to. You could use avg tip and total checks (which the restaurant would have) to extrapolate what portion of non-card tips are being reported. The IRS has not historically prosecuted them but that doesn't mean they couldn't do it quite successfully if they chose to.

why is this a thing to whine about

CDL/goofball,

Not sure why you guys are coming at me. Not condoning tax fraud. Just pointing out its quite common, and there are positions as waiters in chain restaurants that pay better based on common knowledge. At most places, even if you declared 100% of your tips, you'd still come out a good bit ahead.

Why work at Joe's, getting $14/HR paid weekly or biweekly when you can work at BWW/Chili's or whatever doing the same work, clear 20%+ more (in some cases 50%+ more) and get paid every day in cash?

My buddy is a chef/owner. We live in Canada but he's from abroad.

He's been preaching this for a while, I basically said the same thing that's being said here, what's in it for the servers.

Lots of restaurants in North America are starting to go this route, and it's basically in an attempt to balance front/back of house wages. So they're basically re-distributing tips, just in a different way.

I don't see servers in upscale New York restaurants being thrilled about going from 60-80k to ~$15/HR an

True. At the CCF I work at, I make around $150-$200/shift. If you include the hourly wage, it comes to about $25-$30/hr.

Which is why tipping expectations have gotten WAY out of hand. Waiting tables is not worth as the same pay an RN makes.

I agree. RNs should make more than waiters. But considering that people have a right to make a living wage, just maybe the answer isn't to lower a waiter's pay, but increase an RN's. *head asplode*

there's a a big difference b/w living wage and what some high end waiters make.

also nice derail by the nits pointing out legally waiters have to declare all their tips when everyone knows they don't actually come close to declaring everything and the irs wont do much about it unless a case is handed to them on a silver ****ing platter.

Yeah, CalledDownLights posts tilted me. STFU nit. Jesus.

Im assuming this 80k a year figure comes from high end restaurants in places with a high cost of living ? Otherwise thats a pretty lolworthy figure.

Yeah that high of a yearly wouldn't be common everywhere. I'm in the Hampton Roads area of Virginia and last year I made about 40k. I average about 25 hours a week.

EDIT: Year before last, not last year. I only worked 6 months of last year.