I think tipping is a terrible system and almost anything we replace it would be better. How would you feel if your salary was up to the whims of the general public?
One restaurant has started paying servers $10 per hour or 20% of their food sales, whichever is higher. That’s such a great idea.
@rojo “Does a waiter who spends 30 minutes waiting on you in “Chez Ooh La La” work any harder that the one that spends 30 minutes with you at IHOP? Does the waitress at IHOP work harder serving you from the more expensive dinner menu than the less expensive breakfast menu?”
You could ask the same thing about, say, a doctor and a construction worker. It’s harder to become a doctor, so there are less of them, so their services are in high demand, so we pay them more.
The difference between a waiter at a fancy restaurant and a waiter at IHOP is smaller, but supply and demand are still at work. Almost anyone can walk into IHOP and get hired. The menu basically explains itself. If there’s a service issue, it doesn’t matter that much. The manager can just comp your meal (which is like $10), shrug their shoulders, and move on. It’s not like the reputation of IHOP is going to suffer. People know what it’s like.
The best restaurants are usually one single location and not chains. They have a lot more at stake if they upset someone or mess up, so it’s important for every customer to have a good experience. Waiters know they can make more money at a place like this, so there’s more competition for these jobs. The restaurant holds out for the best and most experienced applicants. The work may not be physically harder, but you have to be more knowledgeable and experienced to work in fine dining. Everyone who waits tables is a waiter, but working in a better restaurant is kind of like getting a promotion.
Breakfast vs. dinner has a seniority thing going on, too. The more experienced waiters take the dinner shift 1) because they can, and 2) so the restaurant puts its best face forward during the most important time of day. There are a lot of morons working in the service industry. People who are good move up in the ranks fast.