"Mandatory" Tipping

[2014olympicgold]

@Rylant.

I think the major takeaway is no one knows the stresses of someone else job.

I still hate the tipping system, but I'll still tip. I'll go to a bar to watch a game and just have a couple of beers and I'll tip 13% on that unless it's bad service and I'll go to around 10-12% (depending on cash). I still hate tipping someone for pouring a beer from a draft, or opening a bottle. If I get a nice cocktail I'll tip 20% on that easily.

I've been told you can write on the receipt "The tips for the kitchen" if you think the service sucked, but don't wanna punish the chefs. I've done that a couple of times during extreme cases.

[audiopile]

How about those pump jockies? Where is our tip? All through high school I worked at a full serve only gas station year-round rain or shine exposing myself to harmful chemicals, washing windows and checking and filling oil. I can count on two hands how many tips I got in those three years at $5 per hour.

I might be done tipping.

[rataylor22]

This thread is close to played out, but the second paragraph of “situations” has zero to with serving. I’d imagine someone complaining about their food is less stressful than say having to save someone from drowning as a lifeguard, but servers after tips are paid way more than lifeguards.

Every job has stresses. Literally every job. On the totem pole, serving is very low.

[PenguinHunter]

The way I view stress in a job is to the level that the work comes home with you.

A server... at the end of the day, your job is done. There is no carryover from one day to the next. When your last table leaves, your night is over and you can go home and not think about something that is hanging over your head for the next day of work.

On the other side of the coin, take a lawyer. When does he get to decide to go home at the end of the day? There is usually more paper work and such to be done. He does not get to just pack up and leave when his last clients for the day are done. He has to decide at what point he has to stop working and go home. And when he leaves, he is leaving behind a pile of work that needs to be done. When he is at home, he might be thinking about the upcoming case he has, or the documents that need filed before month end, or the divorce settlement that he has to prepare.

Sure there are stressful situations in each job but the true stress level of any job is the stress that leaves the office/restaurant/tire shop with the employee.

[saucelife90]

I think to an extent that's true, but for example, I don't take my work home with me no matter what type of job I've had. My Fiancé on the other hand, does, no matter what type of job she's had.

I think in a lot of situations it comes down to the type of person you are, and how you handle stressful situations. Personally, work is work and is there for me to pay my bills and the second I'm out the door it usually doesn't cross my mind until I get in the next morning.

[lucafen4]

I and everyone I worked with did, so, shrug. Must speak to service quality or something, take from that what you will.

This should come as no surprise to anyone here...

[lucafen4]

The way I view stress in a job is to the level that the work comes home with you.

A server... at the end of the day, your job is done. There is no carryover from one day to the next. When your last table leaves, your night is over and you can go home and not think about something that is hanging over your head for the next day of work.

On the other side of the coin, take a lawyer. When does he get to decide to go home at the end of the day? There is usually more paper work and such to be done. He does not get to just pack up and leave when his last clients for the day are done. He has to decide at what point he has to stop working and go home. And when he leaves, he is leaving behind a pile of work that needs to be done. When he is at home, he might be thinking about the upcoming case he has, or the documents that need filed before month end, or the divorce settlement that he has to prepare.

Sure there are stressful situations in each job but the true stress level of any job is the stress that leaves the office/restaurant/tire shop with the employee.

For the most part, I agree. Every once in a while - you get 'that' table from hell - that does come home with you. Or you were slammed all night and the stress of always being behind lags home with you. For the most part, it's the exhaustion you bring home after a busy shift.


** it should be noted though - the majority of serving shifts ARE NOT 8 hours in length. Often you work 4-8 or 4-9 , 5-10, in the evening and that's it. I've even worked places where you get 12-2 and 5-8 shifts sure it's '8 hours' - but you only got paid for 5.

[PenguinHunter]

For the most part, I agree. Every once in a while - you get 'that' table from hell - that does come home with you. Or you were slammed all night and the stress of always being behind lags home with you. For the most part, it's the exhaustion you bring home after a busy shift.


** it should be noted though - the majority of serving shifts ARE NOT 8 hours in length. Often you work 4-8 or 4-9 , 5-10, in the evening and that's it. I've even worked places where you get 12-2 and 5-8 shifts sure it's '8 hours' - but you only got paid for 5.

I guess to clarify 'taking your work' home with you... I don't mean the events that happened during the day, the angry clients or chef that is demanding.... I am more referring to the actual work you have to do. Servers, there work is done at the end of the day and each new day is a fresh start. Other careers have parts of the job that take weeks, months, even years to complete and there isn't a fresh start each day.... there is always projects unfinished at the end of the day. That creates stress even if you are one that 'doesn't take work home'

[Rylant]

It is certainly interesting to see it from other's perspectives. Ever since I have been involved in the service industry, I have thought it to be a stressful job. For me personally, it was stressful but manageable. A lot of the servers around me seemed to think that it was extremely stressful as well, however, the servers that I worked with, for the most part, tended to complain a lot even about the smallest thing. Throughout the years, I have also heard a lot of experts and psychologists suggests that serving tends to be a very stressful job. I understand why a person who has never worked in the service industry might think that it was not a stressful job; people tend to make that kind of assumption just based on what they expect to be true, but it is interesting to me to hear people who have experience in the industry suggest that it is not stressful or difficult.

Rylant

[lucafen4]

I guess to clarify 'taking your work' home with you... I don't mean the events that happened during the day, the angry clients or chef that is demanding.... I am more referring to the actual work you have to do. Servers, there work is done at the end of the day and each new day is a fresh start. Other careers have parts of the job that take weeks, months, even years to complete and there isn't a fresh start each day.... there is always projects unfinished at the end of the day. That creates stress even if you are one that 'doesn't take work home'

I'm kind of in the middle ground now.. I have files/clients. I don't do work at home, we're not allowed. Yet things that are in progress are sitting there ready to greet me in the morning. When there's a particularly complicated, sensitive or time consuming file - there's a tendency to mentally bring it home with you and have it consume your thoughts. I have co-workers that come with notes the next day of things they've thought of while at home. I do a good job leaving it at work, others seem to really struggle leaving it at the door

[butch]

man , summer of 1990 I had a girlfriend that looked like audiopiles avatar and she was a server/waitress (summer job)

dont get old you guys !

[2014olympicgold]

man , summer of 1990 I had a girlfriend that looked like audiopiles avatar and she was a server/waitress (summer job)

dont get old you guys !

An ex of mines now looks like PenguinHunters avatar....

[PenguinHunter]

An ex of mines now looks like PenguinHunters avatar....

Except their isn't any cross hairs on her right?!

[PenguinHunter]

It is certainly interesting to see it from other's perspectives. Ever since I have been involved in the service industry, I have thought it to be a stressful job. For me personally, it was stressful but manageable. A lot of the servers around me seemed to think that it was extremely stressful as well, however, the servers that I worked with, for the most part, tended to complain a lot even about the smallest thing. Throughout the years, I have also heard a lot of experts and psychologists suggests that serving tends to be a very stressful job. I understand why a person who has never worked in the service industry might think that it was not a stressful job; people tend to make that kind of assumption just based on what they expect to be true, but it is interesting to me to hear people who have experience in the industry suggest that it is not stressful or difficult.

Rylant

I think life experience and recency bias play a large role into whether someone determines if their job is stressful as well.

If someone is coming from a job as delivering newspapers or walking dogs and enters the server industry.... then it is stressful because it is the most stressful job they have experiences. Whereas if someone has just worked in public practice as a prepared through an income tax season as seasonal employment and then gets a summer job as a server.. they probably would see the serving industry as not stressful in comparison to tax season.

As for recency bias... one might think that as they are a server they are in a more stressful job because their life is more stressful, working to make ends meet or to pay way through school.

[forumname]

You can say it's not a stressful job if you want, but in all my years working in restaurants I don't think I ever worked with a female server who didn't cry at least once at work. Seriously, every single one of them (in my experience) eventually breaks down.

They regularly get treated like absolute shit, and when the going gets tough they often take horrible abuse from both sides (the customers AND the kitchen staff). It's stressful in a different way than being a lawyer or doctor is stressful. It's not about the weight of the job or its consequences, it's about being in the line of fire and having shitty people take out their misery on you, day in and day out. It's often incredibly hectic, and your errors get magnified.

It's not the most stressful job in the world by any stretch, but I can't think of many low paying, entry level type jobs that bring as much stress and abuse as being a server does.

With all that said, I'm still against tipping. I do tip currently because I don't want to be seen as an *******, but I'm very much against it as a general policy. Like others have said, there are plenty of other low paying jobs out there where people don't get supplemented with tips, so the argument about their low wages is nonsense.

If we were somehow able to collectively decide to eliminate tipping, the market would simply correct itself. Servers would seek higher paying opportunities, and employers would be forced to raise wages in order to keep staff. In turn, they would raise prices. How is that bad?