WHAT??***Florida bill would slash minimum wage for tipped workers

I'm a server in the shitty state of Georgia. We get 2.13 an hour, but we don't really get that. Many times my paycheck for two weeks will read 4 or 5 dollars. Sometimes you get no paycheck, just a paycheck stub. Taxes take all you make on the paycheck.

I am lucky enough to work at a good restaurant and make WAY more than minimum wage when you add up the tips though. Not everybody is so lucky. I've been known to bring home 30 dollars an hour on a good night . But that is not guaranteed. Sometimes it's more like 10 dollars an hour on slow nights. But still, 10 an hour bring home is like 13.50 hourly pay.

Actually it's more efficient to prepare food in a centralized professional kitchen than in everyone's houses, combined with their separate shopping trips, garbage pickup, etc. The common eating establishments may not be luxurious, more like cafeterias than with people being expected to tip the person who brings the food to them.

I have no moral position on the minimum wage one way or the other. But making restaurant meals more affordable could cause more people to go to the restaurants and could allow more restaurants to open.

I tip 15% for good service, less for poor service. But it doesn't really matter because I hardly go to places where I would be expected to tip. I find the whole idea uncomfortable.

Let's see ... it really does depend on the quality of restaurant. If you work in one of those chic places with tiny portions and astronomical prices, you'll get paid unbelievably for carrying a moderately heavy load once per table. If it's TGI Fridays, you'll be carrying a lot of heavy greasy stuff and the check, hence the tip, will be lower. But still it's real good pay for carrying a big tray once per table. Compare it with what any physical laborer gets for carrying stuff all day long.

Back in the day...

I would make a grand a week bartending in Florida on tips alone.
$2.13 is perfectly fair for bartenders and food servers.
Barbacks and busboys make far Less in tips, their min wage should be higher.

If you are great at what you do, 20% is the min standard.
Tipped employees usually hope that their "check" covers the tax they make on the tips.

Some get paid under the table just so they don't mess with the taxes,

I sure wouldn't pay delivery tip on top of delivery fee either. But hey, I don't pay for delivery of a by-then-soggy pizza anyway. It's not the fault of the delivery guy or gal, it's just not a reasonable thing to do to a pizza imho.

In Ohio they dont get minimum wage never have, no medical , I was a waitress for 13 years at a 3 star resturant, the owner paid $2.10 an hour, no benifites and the government would take 15 % of our food sales saying we made that much in tips. Thats pretty bad, I was a single Mom raising two kids with no food stamps or section 8 and the x husban bitched because he had to pay $15 a week child support, he didnt even have to pay medical I did. Rough times but I made it through with no help.

I don't think so. Of course a server will state a high number. As a kid I learned 15% for good service. If the bill is low and the service good, I could round up and it could end up close to 20%.

But it was pretty funny when we had heavy inflation in the 70's, and the servers said that because of inflation the tip % should inflate too! No, if there's 10% inflation, all prices go up 10%, and so at a constant 15% tip, the tip cash received goes up 10% too.

You mean the government assumed you made 15% of food sales as taxable tip income, right? If they TOOK 15%, it means they took away all your tips!

To be honest, I was being modest.
I was 20%, not every customer.
But at the end of the night, I avg 20% to sales.
I would set goals every night.

More power to ya!

In the food/bar service industry...

It's about the service that you give, granted there are those people out there... Who no matter what, will tip poorly.

But those who have a personalities that literally create an experience that will "wow" customers, those people will make MAD BANK.

I never, never knew servers were getting this shitty of a deal in other states.

Brings a whole new meaning to, Land of the Deceived - Home of the Slaves.

What we need to do is slash all our elected officials wages by 1/2 > ASAP(~)

Here is a guide to what hospitality staff get paid in NZ.

[link to www.trademe.co.nz]

Remember this does not include tips which are not expected.

I didnt either, Tuff, this is just beyond words.

Remember this has not passed yet. It never will.

i got 5.50$ an hour delivering pizza when i was in college. plus a 10% commission + tips (which were good sometimes).

i rented a shitty studio apartment for 350$ a month..

went to a junior college for 3 years..transferred into a major university later.

took the extra pizza home they were going to dump anyway.


i can't imagine doing it ever again.

this was in the 90's in california.

but on another note..i know some people who bartend at dives who make bank!

Maybe it was 8% they said we made, anyway the tips were good there, in the 80's I made around $200 a week in tips, but my two week paycheck would be from $25 to $8.00 for two weeks. I think the ones still there still make $2.10 an hour

Last Edited by MONSTER on 02/17/2012 08:58 PM

I dont understand why they give the resturant owners that big of a brake in wages.

Tips are prostitution. Immoral, blackmarket, satanic-capitalistic flim-flam and facetiousness. Thank god for Australian wage protections.

You are supposed to leave the money on the table, not stuff it in their panties...

My friend works at a high end rest. And only has to work 3 days a week. She has nice stuff and is looking to buy a house. My hubby works 6 days a week as a plumber and we are sometimes struggling. Guess it depends where you work.

Not true. The IRS monitors this and imputes a tip depending on revenue. In an audit sales receipts are compared to supply bills. If the IRS determines the sales don't meet a certain factor of the expenditures then the IRS imputes the missing revenues.

A tip is a gratuity. You get it for service. No tip no service. One of the problem with French service is the guaranteed 18%. There is no incentive to provide good service.

This thread reminds me of a group of 18 who decided to eat upstairs in the restaurant where I worked years ago. Two solid hours of carrying food, drinks, dishes, water, and desert up and down those stairs had be exhausted. They were the kind of table where there was always one thing more needed. Normally I wouldn't mind, but I had to pass up many tables to care for their needs. Then at the end of the day I got my tip, $1 and a dirty diaper left on the table.

I refused to wait on them after that point. They had to make do with some of the lesser servers. You know the kind, the ones that never refilled drinks, didn't bring silverware, and took 30 minute smoke breaks every hour. (Then complained about the lack of tipping and the loss of job hours every time a new schedule was made.)

Moral of the story is TIP YOUR WAITRESS/WAITER!!


Besides, we have your food behind closed doors. Think about it.

"I know people who work at high end restaurants and make $1500 a week with only 4 hour shifts 5 days a week.

The gov is trying to promote business. Waiters make plenty of money..."


Be realistic here! Most servers do not work at high end restaurants. Most waiters work at places like Chili's or Friday's. Ever worked as a waiter? Do you know that servers need to do something caleed "side work" which is not tipped? This side work usually takes two hours. Two hours at a fraction of the minimum wage.

Also, tips depend on the mood and greed of the customer. You may do a splendid job yet the customer stiffs your or undertips. Some people stay at a table for hours effectively disabling it for further customers and potential tips and to top it all stiff or gives you shit.

You and others who think waiters have it grand in general have NOT stepped in their shoes. Yapping about the exceptions and not the rule underlines your ignorant head in the sand mentality.

While going through college I worked as a waiter and, kid you not, it is a severely underpaid, tough fucking job!

Next time, inform yourself before posting such arrogant bullshit!

By the way, since the gratuity is included in the bill I feel no obligation to provide anything more for average service. Treat me well and I'll give you 30%.

If we can pass but a few more laws, then we can ALL be criminals, and we can ALL be broke too!