Until about 2 years ago, credit card company's merchant agreements prohibited merchants from adding a surcharge. But merchants were charged a processing fee when customers used credit cards.
Since the recision of the surcharge restriction, most merchants add the charge. This includes Park Wood, Village Ice Cream and almost every store you now go into.
About two months ago, the N.J. Attorney General posted notices to merchants that they must conspicuously notify customers of the surcharge.
My point is not whining about people asking for tips. My point is that reliance on tips for income is a sucky way to make a living. It’s a great system if you’re a cheapskate, but a lousy one if you’re trying to feed a family.
Until about 2 years ago, credit card company's merchant agreements prohibited merchants from adding a surcharge. But merchants were charged a processing fee when customers used credit cards.
Since the recision of the surcharge restriction, most merchants add the charge. This includes Park Wood, Village Ice Cream and almost every store you now go into.
About two months ago, the N.J. Attorney General posted notices to merchants that they must conspicuously notify customers of the surcharge.
My point is not whining about people asking for tips. My point is that reliance on tips for income is a sucky way to make a living. It’s a great system if you’re a cheapskate, but a lousy one if you’re trying to feed a family.
Everybody laughs. Joe's comes back to the table.
JOE
Okay ramblers, let's get to
rambling. Wait a minute, who
didn't throw in?
MR. ORANGE
Mr. White.
JOE
(to Mr. Orange)
Mr. White?
(to Mr. White)
Why?
MR. ORANGE
He don't tip.
JOE
(to Mr. Orange)
He don't tip?
(to Mr. White)
You don't tip? Why?
MR. ORANGE
He don't believe in it.
JOE
(to Mr. Orange)
He don't believe in it?
(to Mr. White)
You don't believe in it?
MR. ORANGE
Nope.
JOE
(to Mr. Orange)
Shut up!
(to Mr. White)
Cough up the buck, ya cheap
bastard, I paid for your goddamn
breakfast.
MR. WHITE
Because you paid for the
breakfast, I'm gonna tip.
Normally I wouldn't.
JOE
Whatever. Just throw in your
dollar, and let's move.
(to Mr. Blonde)
See what I'm dealing with here.
Infants. I'm fuckin dealin with
infants.
Restaurants run on narrow margins. Any way that they can stay afloat is fine with me. If tipping someone who makes minimum wage makes it easier for the restaurant to stay in business and gives someone earning poverty wages a little more money, I'm all in. Same with giving money to street performers. It isn't a racket. It's a way for an artist to be able to eat for some. There's nothing wrong with not tipping. To each his own.
Speaking of which, where's the MOL tip jar, Jamie? Always good for a reminder.
In the end, Americans shouldn't have to rely on tips or have so many guns in the hands of crazy people, but this is the country you live in so pay the tips, avoid the gun nuts, and make the most of it.
Servers do not make minimum wage. In some cases they make $3 an hour, their entire take home pay is tips. And in some restaurants they have to pay taxes on the tips. People who hate to tip should learn to cook and eat home every meal. Miserable.
Until about 2 years ago, credit card company's merchant agreements prohibited merchants from adding a surcharge. But merchants were charged a processing fee when customers used credit cards.
Since the recision of the surcharge restriction, most merchants add the charge. This includes Park Wood, Village Ice Cream and almost every store you now go into.
About two months ago, the N.J. Attorney General posted notices to merchants that they must conspicuously notify customers of the surcharge.
Servers do not make minimum wage. In some cases they make $3 an hour, their entire take home pay is tips. And in some restaurants they have to pay taxes on the tips. People who hate to tip should learn to cook and eat home every meal. Miserable.
The law was amended in 2019. Right now the minimum hourly rate for tipped employees is $5.26 but that only applies if the employee receives enough in tips to bring their hourly wage up to the minimum (currently $14.13/hour).
No matter how much a tipped employee makes in tips, the employer has to pay them $5.26/hour. So if someone is working a busy upscale restaurant and gets $400 in tips for an 8 hour shift ($50/hour), their employer still pays them $5.26/hour on top of that.
On the other hand if it’s a slow day at a modest diner and a server makes $40 in tips for an 8-hour shift ($5/hr) the employer is required by NJ state law to pay them enough to get their hourly wage up to $14.13.
Economically for a place like The Spot it would probably make sense to just pay a decent hourly rate and raise their prices by 15%. Then make sure that the customers know their server is paid a fair market rate and tipping is unnecessary. If they have a slow day, they’re on the hook for paying minimum wage anyway. It would probably make their payroll process a lot easier, as well as tax calculations.
Upscale restaurants would potentially have to start offering more competitive wages to the most skilled servers. Part of paying more at a high-end restaurant is about the overall experience and a well-trained and personable waitstaff makes that possible.
In the end, Americans shouldn't have to rely on tips or have so many guns in the hands of crazy people, but this is the country you live in so pay the tips, avoid the gun nuts, and make the most of it.
A few of our restaurant bills in Scotland this month added a 10 percent service charge, which others told us was becoming more common there.
Servers do not make minimum wage. In some cases they make $3 an hour, their entire take home pay is tips. And in some restaurants they have to pay taxes on the tips. People who hate to tip should learn to cook and eat home every meal. Miserable.
I think mrmaplewood’s beef was with tip jars at the register, not with tips for servers. Like the rest of us, he’s free to either drop some thanks-for-operating money in the jar or not, and to boycott or not if the affrontery of the tip jar proves too much to bear.
Very pleased with The Spot! Appreciate the refresh (yes, even the bathroom). Service with a smile. Food (breakfast and lunch) was excellent. Well Recommend!!
I think mrmaplewood’s beef was with tip jars at the register, not with tips for servers. Like the rest of us, he’s free to either drop some thanks-for-operating money in the jar or not, and to boycott or not if the affrontery of the tip jar proves too much to bear.
he sounded like he was fed up with tipping in general. You can believe whatever beef he has, whether he likes it rare or well done is his business.
Very pleased with The Spot! Appreciate the refresh (yes, even the bathroom). Service with a smile. Food (breakfast and lunch) was excellent. Well Recommend!!
it’s definitely better now. I had stopped going to the diner years ago. I hope the new owners well. It’s not easy trying to keep your prices down when costs are high.
My main beef is that the restaurant owner is charging me extra for using a credit card. It is my habit to buy gasoline at stations which do not charge me extra for using a credit card. I will apply that same habit to restaurants.
The law was amended in 2019. Right now the minimum hourly rate for tipped employees is $5.26 but that only applies if the employee receives enough in tips to bring their hourly wage up to the minimum (currently $14.13/hour).
No matter how much a tipped employee makes in tips, the employer has to pay them $5.26/hour. So if someone is working a busy upscale restaurant and gets $400 in tips for an 8 hour shift ($50/hour), their employer still pays them $5.26/hour on top of that.
On the other hand if it’s a slow day at a modest diner and a server makes $40 in tips for an 8-hour shift ($5/hr) the employer is required by NJ state law to pay them enough to get their hourly wage up to $14.13.
Economically for a place like The Spot it would probably make sense to just pay a decent hourly rate and raise their prices by 15%. Then make sure that the customers know their server is paid a fair market rate and tipping is unnecessary. If they have a slow day, they’re on the hook for paying minimum wage anyway. It would probably make their payroll process a lot easier, as well as tax calculations.
Upscale restaurants would potentially have to start offering more competitive wages to the most skilled servers. Part of paying more at a high-end restaurant is about the overall experience and a well-trained and personable waitstaff makes that possible.
oh I know a high end restaurant in upper Montclair that pays $2.50 per hour, the servers wait until they have accumulated months of paychecks to deposit them. I know. They’re constantly looking for waiters…. People who go to a restaurant and bitch and moan and treat servers like trash suck. Miserable people!
My main beef is that the restaurant owner is charging me extra for using a credit card. It is my habit to buy gasoline at stations which do not charge me extra for using a credit card. I will apply that same habit to restaurants.
well go to the atm and take out cash. I hardly use my card in restaurants or gas stations. I don’t trust people with my card. Yes I have debit cards, I don’t own a single credit card. These people can take a picture of your card faster than it takes for you to grab a toothpick and a mint
Using a credit card for purchases is a convenience that someone has to pay for. Due to inflation, costs are rising. Restaurants are trying to keep their prices as low as possible to attract and keep customers. Many restaurateurs can no longer afford to pay the credit card surcharge directly and are passing it on to the customer. I agree with the above poster who suggests paying in cash if you want avoid the credit card fee.
A few of our restaurant bills in Scotland this month added a 10 percent service charge, which others told us was becoming more common there.
I noticed that when I was in London earlier this year. Happily went along with it because everything's so damned expensive in the UK right now and if an extra 10% keeps the staff from having to shop the food banks, I'm all for that.
I always tip at places where you order at the counter, but a few times I've had service issues and regretted the tip. Has anybody ever asked to have their tip returned? I've been tempted once or twice.
I worked as a bus boy at a busy restaurant and got 10% of the tips that the waitresses got. As far as small take out places, I am hoping that the whole staff, cooks and counter people, share in the tips. Perhaps someone is familiar with where the tips in the modern era go.
I worked as a bus boy at a busy restaurant and got 10% of the tips that the waitresses got. As far as small take out places, I am hoping that the whole staff, cooks and counter people, share in the tips. Perhaps someone is familiar with where the tips in the modern era go.
I did this as well, but I was a bus girl, of course... perhaps bus person? The wait staff cheated us blind. A lot of it was cash business--at least the tips--so they would put their tips in another pocket. How did I know? I saw some of them switching money from other pockets after we had squared up... It was still really good money for a 16 year old. Back-breaking work, though.
Servers do not make minimum wage. In some cases they make $3 an hour, their entire take home pay is tips. And in some restaurants they have to pay taxes on the tips. People who hate to tip should learn to cook and eat home every meal. Miserable.
Legally tipped workers are required to pay taxes on ALL tips. Some restaurants make sure they are reported and others leave it to the servers to self-report. I don't hate to tip and I generally tip fairly well. But I DO hate the fact that this is the system we have. Far better that the food prices be a bit higher and the servers be paid a living wage and tips become more for "above and beyond" service rather than a typically required cost.
If I recall right, the waitresses pooled their tips into one pot and then distributed it equally. This was seen as being fairer since they all worked hard and some customers would tip well and some would tip small even if the service was excellent. Of course, this would only work if all were honest. It would be interesting to know how nowadays small takeouts divvy up the tips. Sounds like an interesting college term paper. What does Starbucks do?
Good service is part of any job description. Customers should expect to pay for it in the prices they pay for whatever they buy and employers should expect to pay their employees for it.
Exceptional service should earn both the employer and employee more money.
Why food service and a few other services are singled out as special is beyond me.
I tip, sometimes generously, because of the system.
Good service is part of any job description. Customers should expect to pay for it in the prices they pay for whatever they buy and employers should expect to pay their employees for it.
Exceptional service should earn both the employer and employee more money.
Why food service and a few other services are singled out as special is beyond me.
I tip, sometimes generously, because of the system.
The system should change.
The system is terrible for the workers, but it's embedded into the American culture, which is why I equated it to American gun culture. It's just there. It's just something you have to accept when you're in America - whether you're American or not.
It was long about 5 years ago. An upscale restaurant announced that they were going to pay their employees an above scale wage. AND staff would no longer be allowed to accept tips.
AND the cost of menu items would increase to reflect this practice.
As I recall, it lasted a few months and customers complained about the increased prices on the menu--even though they were not adding a tip.
DaveSchmidt
Reservoir Dogs was 31 years ago, Mr White.