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Mel Nichols, a 37-year-old bartender in Phoenix, Arizona, takes home anywhere from $30 to $50 an hour with tips included. But the uncertainty of how much she’s going to make on a daily basis is a constant source of stress.

“For every good day, there’s three bad days,” said Nichols, who has been in the service industry since she was a teenager. “You have no security when it comes to knowing how much you’re going to make.”

The amount tipped workers make varies by state. Fourteen states pay the federal minimum, or just above $2 an hour for tipped workers and $7 an hour for non-tipped workers.

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[-] Zier@fedia.io 80 points 2 months ago

No one should ever have to work for tips. A living wage should be minimum for all workers, no exceptions. If you get tipped beyond that, great, otherwise, fuck off employers exploiting people.

[-] Zier@fedia.io 5 points 2 months ago

Just to clarify, since people are confused. No one should ever have to live off sub standard wages and hope to hell they make enough tips to survive. This is an exhausting daily hustle that detracts from your quality of life. A livable minimum wage, enforced in all states and industries for every employee, regardless of age, should exist, no exceptions. $20/hr would be a good start. And if people also earned tip money, that went directly to that employee, no sharing with the employer or other employees, that would be fine. Employers need to pay employees proper wages, not your customers.

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[-] apfelwoiSchoppen@lemmy.world 58 points 2 months ago

Tipped hourly work wages are just another way that corporations fuck over workers.

[-] Foni@lemm.ee 47 points 2 months ago

It's funny how they don't consider raising the minimum wage for those who don't receive tips, but rather lowering it for those who do. Make clear the type of people who propose this

[-] Dainterhawk999@lemmy.world 3 points 2 months ago

Minimum wage is the basic necessity... Why the question arises to lower that too remains mystery in this 2020's where inflation, rich poor division, daily lifestyle are all in a chaotic state?

[-] ctkatz@lemmy.ml 45 points 2 months ago

the correct answer is there should be no tips and those workers should be paid the same amount as every other worker.

[-] r0ertel@lemmy.world 6 points 2 months ago

I've read on other social platforms from wait staff that they would prefer tips to a living wage because they can make so much more with tips than without.

I've cut my dining out significantly recently because with the recent hike in restaurant prices, plus the minimum 20% ~~tax~~ tip, dining out is unaffordable.

Also, during covid I became an incredible cook.

The tipping system really just obfuscates the exploitation.

Employees have rights. Foregoing your right to be paid a fair wage in exchange for the chance to make a little more than a fair wage some times just seems bat shit crazy.

[-] john89@lemmy.ca 2 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

If they make more with tips, then they don't get to complain when somebody doesn't tip them.

plus the minimum 20% tax tip

Where are you eating that has a 20% minimum tip? I've only seen stuff like that for big groups.

[-] r0ertel@lemmy.world 5 points 2 months ago

I should have specified ... minimum "suggested" tip. Like when they specify that 20% is added foe groups or if they calculate it for you on the receipt and it shows 20, 22 and 25% or at the terminals at the table the 3 options start at 20. I feel guilty for doing custom and selecting less.

[-] anakin78z@lemmy.world 2 points 2 months ago

I always have to do custom. It's shitty, but I'm not going to lunch to subsidize someone's pay, I just want a sandwich.

[-] HawlSera@lemm.ee 41 points 2 months ago

A tip should be a reward for higher quality work, not asking your customers to subsidize your workers because you're too cheap.

[-] chonglibloodsport@lemmy.world 3 points 2 months ago

A higher minimum wage for restaurant staff is going straight onto the menu prices anyway. But then customers weary of expensive restaurant food stop showing up.

Restaurants are pretty much the toughest industry to be in. The vast majority of them fail. And the ones that really succeed (fast food) don’t have tipping anyway.

The ones who are making all the money are the landlords who own the land the restaurants lease from. They don’t care if 7 tenants restaurants go out of business in 5 years. They can always find more.

[-] HawlSera@lemm.ee 3 points 2 months ago

Thing is, the price is clearly going up whether or not the wages do... so... Moot point

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[-] RamblingPanda@lemmynsfw.com 34 points 2 months ago

I don't even understand the issue. What's keeping them from tipping someone who earns a livable wage? Your service was exceptionally good? Here's my green bill of appreciation. On top of the fair wage you earned by showing up at your place of employment.

[-] JackbyDev@programming.dev 11 points 2 months ago

Because of the culture of tipping and pay structure in the US, tipping is generally not seen as something extra for good service but just part of the price of stuff at restaurants/bars/etc. So in this sense, tipping wouldn't be required for people earning a living wage. But you're describing what tipping "should" be, and yes, with that definition there's no reason to not tip for the occasional above and beyond work.

[-] RamblingPanda@lemmynsfw.com 4 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

But it's even brought up as a reason why paying livable wages would be a disadvantage for good servers. Those two things just don't add up.

Besides that, I want to be able to feed myself and my family even when I have a bad day. If all my days are bad then maybe I shouldn't be in this job in the first place, but that's another story.

Edit: even here there's one of those "but tipping good" people. https://lemmy.world/comment/13002675

[-] JackbyDev@programming.dev 1 points 2 months ago

I get your point, but I'm not trying to make an argument about whether people would make more or less with tips. I don't necessarily mean a specific amount when I say livable wage, I more mean may what they're worth. I'm just saying there's sort of two types of tipping but both have the same term.

[-] dotslashme@infosec.pub 27 points 2 months ago

This is not even the right question to ask. Fucking pay your staff! No one should have to depend on tips to survive.

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[-] BradleyUffner@lemmy.world 19 points 2 months ago

No. An employee's value to the business isn't reduced by them receiving tips. The business shouldn't be able to pay them less because they are a better employee.

[-] DmMacniel@feddit.org 14 points 2 months ago

Lol but they already paid so little because of tips. And now they want to go even lower?!

[-] catloaf@lemm.ee 3 points 2 months ago

No, this is to eliminate the tipped minimum wage.

[-] Kethal@lemmy.world 5 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

There are two bills mentioned in the article. One in Arizona is to make the subminimum wage even lower. One in Massachusetts is to raise the sub minimum wage to match minimum wage, effectively eliminating subminimum wage.

[-] catloaf@lemm.ee 3 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

Shame on me for assuming the Arizona one would also be progressive. (I live in Massachusetts, so I'm familiar with that proposal.)

[-] mindaika@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 points 2 months ago

I dunno about you, but $30/hr seems pretty good for a HS grad

[-] john89@lemmy.ca 4 points 2 months ago

I never tip. Tipping culture should die.

[-] FilthyHookerSpit@lemmy.world 3 points 2 months ago

That's wrong. What you should do is never go to restaurants where workers rely on tips. They have to tip out the bartender/busboy/runner at the end of the night and you not tipping means they're losing money when that happens.

So maybe don't be an asshole and abuse an already terrible system.

[-] Rolive@discuss.tchncs.de 5 points 2 months ago

Tipping means facilitating this system.

By not tipping in a place where it's expected, you're facilitating the system and ensuring the employee is exploited.

If you don't patronise places where tipping is expected, then you're not facilitating the system.

When oh don’t tip you give the restaurant their money, but the waiter doesn’t get their money. Think about who this is hurting.

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this post was submitted on 21 Oct 2024
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