A waitress is sparking a heated debate over tipping culture after creating a video to educate people about how tips are doled out behind the scenes.
After an interaction with a customer, the woman ran online to create his first video for TikTok, where he revealed that each server’s advice is often spread across multiple employees.
In the clip, which has racked up almost three million views, he said that while tipping isn’t mandatory, it can have a negative impact on how much you take home if you have to make up the difference by sharing with your colleagues.
When he informed the customer, the waiter says he reacted with surprise and only then realized how little some people know about how tipping really works.
The budding content creator recalled telling her, “Other people will tip and some will tip more than others and it makes it up to me.” I’d just rather have my tables tipped over.’
The waitress, who is from Canada, got into a tense argument with a customer at her restaurant over tips.
The lady replied: ‘So you prefer it? Why is that?’
The waitress, who explained in a later video that she lives in Canada, had to explain to this customer that if she didn’t receive tips, “the waiters are still going to have to pay money on your bill, and you’re actually costing money.” us money.’
“I feel like no one has explained this to you before,” the waitress said.
Apparently, many of the people who stumbled upon his video had not had this explained to them before either.
Commenters expressed confusion and outrage at the system she referred to as “tilt.”
The concept of servers tipping to help other restaurant employees, such as dishwashers, servers and hosts, has long existed in both the United States and Canada.
Basically, servers must contribute a certain percentage of their total tips to a shared fund that goes to all tipped staff.
This exists so that employees who don’t have the opportunity to interact with customers face-to-face to earn tips can share in the prosperity.
The waitress explained how her tipping system works in a later video.
Each restaurant usually has an agreed-upon policy between owners and employees about what is a fair percentage for servers to “tip.”
This is sometimes called tip pooling and can be done two different ways.
Servers can be required to give away only a percentage of their tips.
According to an example from a business management consultancy Base of operationsIf a server earns $100 in tips on a particular night, he or she may have to give 10 percent of that amount to the server, 7 percent to the bartender, 5 percent to the runner, and 3 percent to the host.
This would leave them with $75 in tips that they can keep free and clear.
Some restaurants, including Waiter’s, operate on a “percentage of sales” model.
Under this regime, waiters must account for everything they sold that night, including food and drinks.
So, if a server sells $100 in drinks and $400 in food, plus earns $100 in tips, according to a Homebase hypothetical, the restaurant can deduct certain percentages of food and drink sales from total tips.
Under a ‘percentage of sales’ model, if a waiter or waitress did not receive enough tips, they would have to cover their customers’ bills out of their own pocket.
The bartender could be required to give 10 percent of the $100 ($10) in drink sales to the bartender. They may also have to give 3 percent of the $400 ($13) in food sales to the broker.
Based on the $100 in tips they received, this hypothetical server would tip $23 to the rest of the staff and keep $77.
The TikToker broke down her one-night total in a later video, which showed cash and card transactions, as well as the types of things customers purchased, including food, wine, beer and whiskey.
However, he couldn’t remember the specific percentages he had to give to various employees.
So in theory, if he didn’t receive enough tips, he would have to cover his customers’ bills out of his own pocket.
Of course, this wouldn’t mean she wouldn’t get paid or “pay” to be a waitress.
Over the course of a pay period, bartenders still need to earn whatever minimum wage with tip is in your state so that the restaurant’s tip sharing policy complies with the law.
Their viewers erupted in the comments with their opinions on the matter, with some saying it shouldn’t be their responsibility to support waiters and others blaming restaurants for this seemingly complicated system.
‘When you don’t tip because you want to hurt the employer by not paying them a living wage, you’re actually only hurting the waiter. The rich employer does not bear the loss,” one person wrote.
Another wrote that he thought, “To me, tipping is a crazy idea, no one should be responsible for paying tips when there are no tips.” A job is supposed to make you money, not cost you.’
‘What what?! The tip is inhumane. What’s wrong with the United States?’ wrote a third.
Others were more outraged, believing that regardless of how restaurants operate, they should not be required to tip a certain amount.
‘Bro, that’s not OUR job. That’s your employer’s job,” one person wrote.
Another chimed in: “None of this is the customer’s problem.”
Americans are pretty divided on the tipping debate, according to a Pew Research Survey 2023.
Overall, 21 percent of American adults believe tipping is an option, 29 percent say it is more of an obligation, and 49 percent say it depends on the situation.
Younger Americans were more likely than older Americans to view tipping as an obligation.
Wealthier respondents were also more likely to see it as a duty compared to those with lower incomes.