this post was submitted on 17 Jul 2023
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Work Reform

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Excerpt from the article:

Schenker says that after his years in the service industry, he has watched tipping evolve into a major part of his pay.

"If there is some means of tipping that's available to you, that should signal to you that workers there aren't being paid enough," says Schenker. "Tipping is sort of an acknowledgment of that fact."

To Schenker, customers who don't tip are not understanding that businesses treat tips as a baked-in part of workers' wages.

"They subsidize lower prices by paying employees less," he says. "If you aren't tipping, you are taking advantage of that labor."

He was so close... Especially for someone who says himself does not make much money.

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[–] LemmyFeed@lemmy.world 137 points 1 year ago (2 children)

It's crazy how some workers actually defend the tipping system and blame the consumer. They're doing the work of their oppressors and can't even realize it. The business isn't subsidizing lower prices, they're lining the pockets of their investors and telling the workers to get mad at the consumers.

[–] Hextic@lemmy.world 51 points 1 year ago (9 children)

I find the ones that defend it are... Attractive. I've heard how some can make more in a weekend than I can in a 2 week period. None of em uggos.

[–] ApathyTree@lemmy.dbzer0.com 19 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

Or highly highly personable. But also usually both.

I was a workhorse and could solo Saturday rush for a restaurant with an hour wait, but I’d have made way more if I could flirt and bs with people when it’s slow.

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[–] jerebear205@lemmy.world 13 points 1 year ago

Yeah my part time job is tipped and I hate it. It's a a scam for both the consumer and the worker. I just want a higher wage and not be at the whelm of ppl

[–] hypna@lemmy.world 65 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I feel for this guy having to make a living with the meager pay of a barista, but setting the minimum wage to a livable level and pegging it to inflation is a much better solution. Hell, throw in some single-payer, universal healthcare, and take that item off everyone's personal budget while we're at it.

[–] lildictator@feddit.nl 7 points 1 year ago

> throw in some single-payer, universal healthcare

When you do that, don't forget to include coverage for the stuff around your head: dental care, eyeglasses and mental health. Many countries forgot to include coverage for these things and it is a shitshow.

[–] DrTautology@lemmy.world 51 points 1 year ago (10 children)

Unfucking believable. Not a single mention of the actual problem in that article. Not a single mention of who is to blame.

[–] Moghul@lemmy.world 17 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Humans are dumb as fuck. Reddit was full of people mad at moderators for protesting Reddit's api changes just a few weeks ago.

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[–] dolla@lemmy.world 48 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

I’ve worked minimum wage customer service jobs for a decade. I haven’t worked in jobs that rely on tips (though I have worked in a bar where tipping exists, but is way more normalized) but there’s no way in hell the customer is the answer to paying employees a livable wage—that’s just insane. The burden here shouldn’t be on the customer to subsidize the employer, this “economist” has it ass backwards. This is a situation that has to get worse before it gets better, I am not going to tip more to help the greedy owner undercut their employees

[–] Crisps@lemmy.world 42 points 1 year ago (10 children)

Tipping a barista while paying would almost always mean tipping BEFORE the service is rendered. This is not a tip, it is just an added fee.

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[–] BassaForte@lemmy.world 36 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

I've dropped my average tip percentage back down to 15% (20% for good waiters / waitresses we see often). Complying with larger tip percentage is exactly what the business owners want us to do, and to think that it's going to stop at 25%? 30%? Their default tip range will just keep climbing.

[–] golamas1999@lemmy.world 25 points 1 year ago (2 children)

I would feel less offended if on every bill they would just raise the price my 20% and give that to the workers.

[–] Nemo@midwest.social 18 points 1 year ago (1 children)

If they raised the prices 20%, most of that's not going to the workers. You know it and I know it.

[–] Devccoon@lemmy.world 11 points 1 year ago

They effectively have, via tipping. And the employer pays less so ultimately the employee gets screwed no matter what.

The fact they look to us as the problem and not their employers just tells me the scheme is working. Count the money, twirl the moustache and pet the evil lap cat, villains of the world. You've won as always, and the downtrodden are still too busy infighting over scraps to realize whose boot they're under.

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[–] qball@kbin.social 24 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Recognizing that the act of asking for an unsolicited tip as a requisite part of buying a coffee is making both customers and himself uncomfortable, acknowledging that his take home pay is so abysmally low that he depends on tips to make a living, and then after all of that, blaming the customer as the primary problem for not being willing to tip in the current economy/environment, is like making a 95 yard run and then tripping over your own shoelaces at the endzone.

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[–] hahattpro@lemmy.ml 23 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Tipping is a way customers sponsoring greedy capitalist ability to pay below minimum wage.

In my country, people usually don't tip. They only tip in some special service, such as sex workers.

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[–] little_hoarse@sh.itjust.works 14 points 1 year ago

Stop making the customers pay your workers. They’re not our responsibility

[–] Candybar121@lemmy.world 11 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (6 children)

Hi, I'm American I live in America. I don't tip, because the entire tipping industry puts more burden on the consumer than is fair. I came to exchange my money for goods or services, as the business expects. I did not come to giveaway even more of my hard earned money to someone who is already getting paid for the very thing they expect me to double pay them for. That is all, have a great day.

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[–] Compactor9679@lemm.ee 10 points 1 year ago

And why whould I take the slack? You made a deal on how much you will get paied... Is it too little? Negociate.... Dont ask for charity

[–] reddit_sux@lemmy.world 10 points 1 year ago

Customer pays for the wages of the server when he pays the bill period.

[–] fearout@kbin.social 6 points 1 year ago

I like the way Europe handles tipping. A lot of the restaurants generally add a fixed service charge (most often it’s about €3 per person), and that’s kinda it. It’s common to leave a couple of euros extra, but nothing too drastic. Huge tips are not expected, and like half of the machines don’t even support the tipping function (more common in France/Italy, for example, while countries like Greece are more likely to have tipping enabled).

There might be a bit more pressure to tip in more touristy city center places, but you’re better off avoiding those in general anyway. Smaller local restaurants are way better.

Furthermore, tipping isn’t expected outside of restaurants/deliveries at all. The amount of jobs that seem to require tipping in the US is insane. Like guys, just put it in the bill and tell me the price.

[–] vittoria666@lemmy.world 6 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I only get about $60 at a time. When my aunt takes me out to eat, I may have spent some of the money and also have some to spend after. I can’t really afford to tip.

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