Why is it that people do not realize that you should tip your server at least 15%?

Question

There has been an influx of prices, minimum wage has not been raise (servers make $2.13 an hour), yet people are still leaveing a 10% tip or less.

Would people rather not leave any tip and have a server who has no insentive to give you good service? This will raise the price of you food and won't even guarentee a full drink, becasue that server will only be getting $5.15 an hour...same as McDonald's and Burger King.

Answer 1

First of all, for all of those people who said tipping is a choice you choose to make, you are ***holes! Let me tell you why. Most restaurants these days require the servers to pay some form of tip share, usually between 3 to 5% of the server's total sales. If you don't tip, you take money out of the server's pocket. For example if you're bill is $100 and you don't tip, your server is probably paying the restaurant $3-5, because you CHOSE not to tip. Would you like to pay money to work?



For all those people who can calculate and do tip 15 or 20% of your bill, I applaud you. There are many that can calculate this percentage on a $20 check, but when they get an $80 or $120 or a $200 check, suddenly the numbers don't compute. Please don't be cheap; do the math.



And finally for those of you who tell servers that they did great and tip 5%, just know that the servers will be talking about you in the kitchen. And the servers WILL remember you when you visit again.



I'm really not a mean person. I just want more people to be aware of what servers go through. I buy formula and diapers with this money. Don't take money out of our pockets.

Answer 2

Think of it this way...If you tip a server say 15%, that server may only see 11.5% or less even of that 15% tip that you left at the end of their shift. Many resturants have inplemented a system where the server has to tip out money on the amount of their sales to various other people who help out in a busy resturant, and depending on their sales for that evening you could very well be stealing money from that server if you think about it. Because if you leave a say a 10% tip, as many people think is still ok, that server may only see 6.5% of that tip and so on... Also many people don't know what it like to live on just their tips, and work with the public, who are often times very demanding, because they have not worked in the service industry. When you go to a resturant to be served you have to understand when you sit in the servers section, you aren't their only table. They may have up to 5 or more tables other than you. So give your server credit, serving is hard work, the server is only one person and they are not super woman/man.

Answer 3

I worked in the restaurant industry for many years & my wait staff always made great money. Sometimes even more than I did in management. Are you doing the best job you can? Or could you improve? Treat all guests like guests. Don't leave dirty dishes on the table when they are through. Listen to your guests & be attentive but not overly attentive. Be sure & thank them for coming to your establishment as they have many choices. The guest is your reason for being when you are at work so treat them as such. My biggest pet peeve when eating out is that I ask for milk with my meal & they bring it before the food because they were not listening. Another is when they complain about anything. Nobody wants to hear that. You are not entitled to a tip. You have to earn it. I always tip well regardless though because I know how things can be sometimes. Hope this helps you to increase your tips & make even more than ever. I've seen it done. One other thing always offer an appetizer & a dessert as well as any add ons you can. My experience is, the higher the amount the guest check is, the higher the tip. Good luck.

Answer 4

Some people are just plain old cheap and others have not been exposed enough to dining out to know the tipping rules. I live in a city where people live and die by tipping, valet parkers, dealers and cocktail servers make minimum wage here but many pull down $50,000 - $90,000 a year with their tips. Everyone on yahoo answers should take note and remember to tip your server a decent amount, at least %15. And tip earners, make sure you provide service worthy of said tips!!!

Answer 5

Obviously these people don't work in the restaurant industry and could care less that you are earning $3.34 per hour plus tips. In a recent study, 20% of all people that eat out do not know that servers make less than minumum wage and believe that even if they do not leave a tip that you are still are making minimum wage. How stupid is America getting??

Answer 6

Question for you? How do you know in advance what your tip is going to be? Customers pay and tip at the end of the meal, right?



If the servers attitude sucks and the service is lousy, servers usually don't get rewarded with fat tips.



There is no way for you to know how much you are going to make until AFTER you have waited on your customers, how can you justify not doing your best?



My family and I are regulars at a place near my house. We've never had bad service, they're kind to our kids, and serve really great food. And guess what? They were profession from the get go. They didn't wait to see what we were going to tip before they decided to be nice!!



Your lousy tips are a result of your own lousy attitude.

Answer 7

per chance it really is the waitresses that decide on to do not forget that in the journey that they decide on the anticipated 15%, that they decide on to grant that element of provider. I have over tipped and fewer than tipped, it relies upon on how solid of a job is finished. that is a shopper provider pushed market, there are a range of eating places I thoroughly boycott (which have solid nutrition) depending on the unfavorable provider I received at the same time as there. And purely because someone has a coach bag, does not mean it truly is the reason they don't look to be tipping properly, they could purely be low priced or the provider grow to be unfavorable!

Answer 8

If a server is average to good - i will double the tax; which is more than 16%. If they are excellent I have tipped anywhere from $15.00 on a 25.00 tab to $50 or $100.00 on a 60.00 tab. It depends on how much money I have available at the time for dining as well as how good the service is.

Answer 9

Tipping is a choice, my friend. That fact seems to have gotten lost over the past few years. No one is required to tip a server. And the percentage should be based on performance, not what is 'customary.' Let me give a clue to the clueless:



I used to be a crewmember on a cruiseline. The waiters, head waiters, bar staff, cabin stewards were all paid TIPS ONLY for the most part. They made out VERY WELL because they busted their tails to provide good service. Now, since most of the cruiselines have changes their policy and they now automatically deduct a certain amount of dollars per person, per day for all of those people, the performance of cruiseline employees has tanked. I regularly take cruises and there is NO COMPARISON between the performance of years past and what it is now.



Here is another clue: If you want 15%, bust your tail for it. If you want 20%, bust it even harder. I pay 20% for good service. I pay zero for bad, and I always tell the manager on duty if the service was bad. So instead of demanding a tip, work for it. You CHOSE to make 2.13 an hour. No one forced you into it. You want a good hourly wage? McDonalds starts at over 7 bucks an hour in certain places. But instead of flipping burgers, why not choose to have a good attitude and work ethic and that 2.13 an hour will be irrelevant because you will be SWIMMING in the tips.



Stop demanding handouts. Your sounding like a democrat. ;)

Answer 10

Surprisingly, not many people know that they should leave a tip period. People that do leave tips usually leave a dollar or whatever extra change that they have. Because of this, a lot of restaurants have gone to a "built in" tip where the customer has to pay the tip anyway.

Answer 11

I think the top two reasons for not tipping is that people think the restaurant should pay their help a decent wage and people do not know how much they should tip.

Answer 12

I would prefer the "built-in tip" because I find it a big time hassle to "calculate" how much the waiter should get. Is the tip before tax, after tax..is he deserving the 15% or should we give him less? Or was he/she so fantastic that we leave a bigger tip?

It's a super stupid system.



PS: I just read what FREAK BOY said and yes ...he is so right! I gave you a thumbs up!

Answer 13

typically-bad tippers never had to work in an environment where tips were an important percentage of pay-incidentally- 20% is now the norm for a tip

Answer 14

Unless there's something terribly wrong with the service, people who don't tip decently should stay home and cook! I consider my waitresses as friends and treat them accordingly!

Answer 15

I don't think people realize, until they've worked for tips themselves, how important they are and how hard you work for them. You have to really try hard to NOT get 20% from us. Of course, we both worked in restaurants before.

Answer 16

Some people are just cheap. =]] Sad, but ture. I always tip at /least/ eight dollars.