I'll keep this short. I noticed that "tipping" was trending on Twitter today. I shouldn't really have to write what I'm about to write, and I'm sure most people reading this will agree with I'm about to write and have expressed similar thoughts to their friend and colleagues. However, based on what I'm seeing on Twitter today, it seems there is a non-zero chance that somebody reading this needs to see the following message.
If you don't tip your server at least 20% at a restaurant, you're an asshole.
Actually, that's not completely fair to say, because some of you reading this might not know the following fact.
The federal minimum wage for tipped workers is $2.13 an hour.
So, let's start again. Now that you know the information above ...
If you don't tip your servers at least 20% going forward, you're an asshole.
Those of us that go out to eat, are responsible for making sure that the people that serve us have enough to eat. We are responsible for making sure they have a roof over their head and can take care of their children. Nobody can live on $2.13 an hour, so those of us that go out to eat are responsible for bringing that $2.13 an hour up to a living wage.
I understand that the entire American system of tipping is stupid and it would be far better if restaurants across the country uniformly paid servers living wages and the practice of tipping was elminated. I'd happily accept higher prices on the menu at restaurants if I knew servers were being paid a steady living wage that did not depend on the tipping habits of the people they happened to serve on a given night. However, that's not the way things work in this country, and until the restaurant business does change, we need to keep tipping generously. I'll admit that it sometime feels unfair that people who tip generously wind up paying more for the same food/service at a restaurant than people who don't tip much, but I'm going to continue to tip generously, because I'm not an asshole.
Rich
