Just the tip.

[nik0tine]

Tipped employees get paid at least minimum wage in California and we have tons and tons of non giant corporate chains. One of our biggest fast food chains in California is actually family owned and pays their employees (even part time employees) several dollars ABOVE state mandated minimum wage, as well as provides health care.

The key words here are 'one of our biggest' and 'fast food'. Of course one of your biggest chains can afford to pay their employees that wage, but what about one of your smallest? Should they cease to exist simply because they aren't a big company?

Also, as I understand it, fast food has the same standards for paying their employees as everyone else. I have never heard of someone working in fast food who was paid less than minimum wage. I've also never heard of someone in fast food receiving tips.

We're talking about locally owned sit down restaurants. Not corporate chains, big or small. I find it very interesting that Californian restaurants are able to sustain themselves and pay their servers minimum wage, however I also have to wonder how many of those businesses wouldn't have gone under when the recession hit if they had the option of paying their employees less. I also have to wonder how many employees at these restaurants lost their job and haven't been employed since.

Paying everyone better wages isn't necessarily a good idea if it means less people have the opportunity to work.

[Flaming Ice]

[QUOTE=nik0tine;3148848]

As for the topic itself, I tip based on the service received. If I spend ~$10 the server is probably getting $1 unless they actually do something they didn't have to. Yesterday at lunch the restaurant I sometimes go to was pretty busy, so I asked the server if she thought I should go somewhere else. She put my order in before the party of like 10 even though they had already ordered before I had even got there. This time my tip was pretty close to $3 for a sandwich that cost me only $9.

Tables of one take up space you could use for other people so they try to rush them out

[nik0tine]

Tables of one take up space you could use for other people so they try to rush them out

Then expect a crappy tip

[Miriel]

Tipped employees get paid at least minimum wage in California and we have tons and tons of non giant corporate chains. One of our biggest fast food chains in California is actually family owned and pays their employees (even part time employees) several dollars ABOVE state mandated minimum wage, as well as provides health care.

The key words here are 'one of our biggest' and 'fast food'. Of course one of your biggest chains can afford to pay their employees that wage, but what about one of your smallest? Should they cease to exist simply because they aren't a big company?

Also, as I understand it, fast food has the same standards for paying their employees as everyone else. I have never heard of someone working in fast food who was paid less than minimum wage. I've also never heard of someone in fast food receiving tips.

We're talking about locally owned sit down restaurants. Not corporate chains, big or small. I find it very interesting that Californian restaurants are able to sustain themselves and pay their servers minimum wage, however I also have to wonder how many of those businesses wouldn't have gone under when the recession hit if they had the option of paying their employees less. I also have to wonder how many employees at these restaurants lost their job and haven't been employed since.

I only mentioned that this is a fast food company is because fast food companies are notoriously troutty with their employees. While In-N-Out is widely recognized as treating their employees extremely well.

And it wasn't always as big as it is today, they were based strictly in southern California because they didn't want to freeze any of their products to ship. It's a great example of a small family run business (it's still family run today) that succeeded and was able to become a powerhouse in a super competitive fast food market while maintaing the quality of their food, satisfying customers, and keeping employees happy.

The point being, a company can become really successful and expand while paying their employees a living wage.

I find it very interesting that Californian restaurants are able to sustain themselves and pay their servers minimum wage, however I also have to wonder how many of those businesses wouldn't have gone under when the recession hit if they had the option of paying their employees less. I also have to wonder how many employees at these restaurants lost their job and haven't been employed since.

Paying everyone better wages isn't necessarily a good idea if it means less people have the opportunity to work.

Whaaa? I am absolutely surrounded by local non-chain restaurants. More pop up all the time. They're doing fine. I literally have a list of like 100 restaurants in the area that I've been meaning to eat at (hello, Yelp bookmarks!). Yes, restaurants go out of business but there's a lot of factors why, not just paying that extra couple dollars per hour per server.

And yet the tipping culture in California is still prevalent. I once had a server actually TELL me to please tip well. I wanted to punch him in the face.

It doesn't make sense for people in other states to have to subsidize people's wages based on how generous they're feeling. And it doesn't make sense for me to tip people here in California where they're already being paid for their work. Super good service, yeah, I get it. You want to say thank you and you add a few more bucks. But what's with the idea that I have to pay like 15% extra even if the server did nothing but perform their job adequately?

[Flaming Ice]

Tables of one take up space you could use for other people so they try to rush them out

Then expect a crappy tip

All about the money.

[nik0tine]

Whaaa? I am absolutely surrounded by local non-chain restaurants. More pop up all the time. They're doing fine.

That's kind of a broad generalization, don't you think?

Yes, restaurants go out of business but there's a lot of factors why, not just paying that extra couple dollars per hour per server.

There is, ultimately, only one reason why any company ever goes out of business; they earns less than they spend. Of course, many factors are at play as to why that happens but in the end it always boils down to the same thing.

All about the money.

Can't I say the same thing about the servers who are rushing me out just so they can earn more in tips?

[Jiro]

If a restaurant can't afford to pay the employees it has working then clearly there is an issue. You either fire some staff, up your prices, or get more custom. Customers shouldn't be paying more on top of their meal because they're good people who don't want to see other good people starve to death because their boss doesn't think the job they do is worth paying them more for. Stop paying everyone their wage and expect them to get by on tips; it won't work.

[Flaming Ice]

All about the money.

Can't I say the same thing about the servers who are rushing me out just so they can earn more in tips? [/QUOTE]


Yeah


It may not necessarily be the reason why but most likely.

[Quindiana Jones]

You can transfer that entire post to pretty much every other job a person can do.

[Quindiana Jones]

Personal or not, people do get rushed out so that wait staff can get more tips. It happens because they need money because they're working in America. xD

[Jinx]

Personal or not, people do get rushed out so that wait staff can get more tips. It happens because they need money because they're working in America. xD

It happens. But probably not as often as people think. Which was my point.

[Hollycat]

Yesterday I had to ask some people to leave because they'd been there for over two hours and there were no tables left.

[Cloudane]

On the speeding people up thing, I find it interesting in one of the pizza restaurants here that they play very notably fast-paced music. Subconsciously you find yourself eating faster - it's a neat tactic.

It's understandable in there as it's a popular place. Often there are people in the waiting area until a table is free, so tables taking their sweet time = potential profits just sat there waiting and sometimes walking out. It's just interesting.

[Goldenboko]

Maybe so, Quin.

I just got tired of seeing several times "I HATE WAITERS WHO RUSH ME OUT SO THEY CAN HAVE MORE TABLES TO GET MORE TIPS."

It's not always a personal thing.

There's definitely one place I went to where that was the case though, because it was all you can eat and they'd always be mad when I'd order desert. If you don't want me ordering desert, don't have it on your all you can eat menu

[nik0tine]

It happens. But probably not as often as people think. Which was my point.

It's actually never crossed my mind that a waiter might rush someone out of a restaurant to earn more tips. That's probably because it's never happened to me as far as I can remember.

If it did happen, though, I'd give a crap tip and never come back.