Insulting 1% Waitress Tip

[Hum]

Just when you may have thought the ongoing battle between the 99% and the 1% was dying down, it may have been reignited. A wealthy banker left a $1.33 tip on a $133 lunch at the True Food Kitchen restaurant in Newport Beach, California.

To add insult to injury the word "tip" was circled on the receipt, and the banker wrote "get a real job" on the bill. The picture of the receipt was taken and uploaded to the blog Future Ex-Banker by a person who was dining with the anonymous banker. As expected, the blog received a lot of attention and has now been taken down. The author of the blog wrote, "mention the 99% in my boss' presence and feel his wrath. So proudly does he wear his 1% badge of honor that he tips exactly 1% every time he feels the server doesn't sufficiently bow down to his holiness."

People online who had a chance to see the blog post before it went offline and those who have been made aware of it on social media outlets are outraged. One person called the tip a "tale of greed and contempt," and another referred to it as "arrogance personified." The Web's general reaction to this story is eerily similar to an almost identical 1% vs. 99% scenario that took place last fall. In Washington state, a waitress received a tip of no money and advice scrawled on the receipt that told her she could "stand to lose a few pounds." :laugh:

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[LittleNeutrino Veteran]

I hate people that flaunt around that they are douchbags.

[spacer]

And this is exactly why our country is turning to ****. I hope this banker gets what's coming to him.

[djdanster]

In England if a tip isn't left, it isn't frowned upon. So why is it in the US? You shouldn't have to or be pressured into leaving a tip ffs!

That being said, there was not need to the horrible comment after.

[fsX]

The tip system in the US is what's insulting. It's your employer's duty to pay your salary, not the customers'.

That said, that's no reason to be an *******. Give no/low tips if you want, but writing that stuff on the receipt is completely unnecessary.

[FMH]

The 1% tip pales in comparison to this. Now this, is what I would call: disgusting.

To add insult to injury the word "tip" was circled on the receipt, and the banker wrote "get a real job" on the bill.

[techbeck]

I have tipped two cents several times if the server was rude. But this is just stupid.

Any other time I tip at least 20 percent.

[DClark]

Whilst, people ignore the wealthy philanthropists to satisfy their "cause." My cause is simple: do not interfere with the transactions between private individuals.

[Jimmy0]

I see nothing wrong with the amount left, only the comment written. There was no need for that.

[NeoandGeo]

If everyone "got a real job" noone would be there to serve his dumb ass. Haha.

Not everyone can be rich and do great things, we have to have those that do menial work.

[Ambroos]

I always thought tipping was weird. In Belgium people think it's REALLY weird if you tip a waiter/waitress. You pay the exact amount, and if you pay with a bigger note they just give you the exact amount they have to. As it's been said before, the employers are supposed to pay the staff, not the customers.

[Guest xiphi]

If he had done that were I work, that would be the last time he'd eat there. Way too many damn times do I see the girls I work with get stiffed after busting their butts. Writing a note is even worse. That would result in a ban. Don't come out in public if you can't show some respect. Bad enough we deal with *******s everyday. Last thing I need is for someone to write something like that and upset them even more, and, yes, it has happened. Even more so when they're drunk.

That said, restaurants need to be held accountable for paying their waitresses/waiters instead of them having to rely on tips to make ends meat. $2.85 an hour is NOT how one pays bills or feeds kids and puts clothes on their backs.

[Hum]

I only tip if the service, food was good. :laugh:

[hotdog666al]

In England if a tip isn't left, it isn't frowned upon. So why is it in the US? You shouldn't have to or be pressured into leaving a tip ffs!

That being said, there was not need to the horrible comment after.

Haha yeah man, the only tips I leave are a result of being too lazy to sort out the change!

If you expect a tip, add it to the prices, simple!

[htcz]

I dont tip at all. Period.

[Charisma Veteran]

In England if a tip isn't left, it isn't frowned upon. So why is it in the US? You shouldn't have to or be pressured into leaving a tip ffs!

That being said, there was not need to the horrible comment after.

For the zillionth time...

Servers are not paid full minimum wage in the US, and the food is overall much cheaper than you would get in a restaurant in most other countries. A tip is customary and a certain percentage is expected, the idea is that if the server goes out of their way to provide exemplary service, they get a higher tip, and vice versa. I look at it like this: I'd be paying about the same amount for a meal and no tip in another country as I do here in the U.S. with a tip. It also brings the server's paycheck up to about the equivalent of what it would be in another country where they're paid a proper wage.

Plus, it's just a culture thing--you tip in the US. Not understanding the system (as a visitor/tourist) is one thing, but intentionally being a douchebag like this guy is quite another.

[Squirrelington]

http://www.dol.gov/whd/state/tipped.htm

Minimum wages for tipped employees. Significantly lower than regular minimum wage in some states.

[Amarok]

I always tip well unless the service is dreadful. I don't really have a problem with the guy being cheap because hey a lot of people are, but the note is inexcusable imo.

[Rohdekill]

For the zillionth time...

Servers are not paid full minimum wage in the US, and the food is overall much cheaper than you would get in a restaurant in most other countries. A tip is customary and a certain percentage is expected, the idea is that if the server goes out of their way to provide exemplary service, they get a higher tip, and vice versa. I look at it like this: I'd be paying about the same amount for a meal and no tip in another country as I do here in the U.S. with a tip. It also brings the server's paycheck up to about the equivalent of what it would be in another country where they're paid a proper wage.

Plus, it's just a culture thing--you tip in the US. Not understanding the system (as a visitor/tourist) is one thing, but intentionally being a douchebag like this guy is quite another.

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) requires payment of at least the federal minimum wage to covered, nonexempt employees. An employer of a tipped employee is only required to pay $2.13 an hour in direct wages if that amount plus the tips received equals at least the federal minimum wage, the employee retains all tips and the employee customarily and regularly receives more than $30 a month in tips. If an employee's tips combined with the employer's direct wages of at least $2.13 an hour do not equal the federal minimum hourly wage, the employer must make up the difference.

[+ir0nw0lf Subscriber²]

Bad/rude waiter/waitress = below average tip from me.

Great waiter/waitress = average/above average tip from me.

I used to use the "drink test" to help me figure out how well they do: the ones who leave my glass dry as the Sahara the whole meal get a crap tip from me, those who are always offering to refill me usually get a good tip. In this 1% tip case, that was an insult pure and simple and the comment was complete a-hole. I almost hope that guy chokes on a sammich. Karma. That is all.

[Dick Montage]

I have to say, having been a visitor to the US I have genuinely neglected the tip sometimes, because over here you only tip if it was good.

But to act like he did is douchy!

[Charisma Veteran]

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) requires payment of at least the federal minimum wage to covered, nonexempt employees. An employer of a tipped employee is only required to pay $2.13 an hour in direct wages if that amount plus the tips received equals at least the federal minimum wage, the employee retains all tips and the employee customarily and regularly receives more than $30 a month in tips. If an employee's tips combined with the employer's direct wages of at least $2.13 an hour do not equal the federal minimum hourly wage, the employer must make up the difference.

Sadly, that doesn't always happen though.

[rfirth]

In England if a tip isn't left, it isn't frowned upon. So why is it in the US? You shouldn't have to or be pressured into leaving a tip ffs!

We found that customer service was lacking in England, perhaps because they aren't expecting a tip. I'm not how accurate this is, but it seemed to a broad pattern. You might not notice it if you're used to it though.

[AJerman]

I understand that some people outside the US may not understand the tipping system in the US, but understand that it's not something considered optional here, though you technically DO still have the option. You are given the option hoping that you aren't a douchebag that will stiff someone, and will tip them accordingly based on their service. Most servers make less than $2.50 an hour, a number that's not even liveable off of. You want to tell them to get another job? Then where is your lazy ass going to get food when you want to go out to eat? 15-20% is considered an acceptable base tip. If service is bad, give them 10%, if service is good, give them 25%, if service is average, give them something in that 15-20% range, however, these people literally cannot survive without your tips. It isn't like in other countries where a tip is a bonus on top of their normal pay. Regardless of how you think it should or shouldn't work, that's the way it works, and it's not a server's fault that it works that way, trust me, they would much prefer to be getting paid a guaranteed "normal" minimum wage, and have tips optional on top, but then people really probably would never tip.

If you can't afford to give the person that took your order, entered it, brought it to you, made sure you had everything you wanted, kept your drinks filled, all while you sat at the table doing nothing but waiting a tip, then you need to stop eating out. If you choose not to by choice, then you are a low life, piece of ****, no two ways about it. If it raises the price too much, complain to the restaurant about their food prices, not to your server doing their job and hoping to get paid from it. This is why large parties typically get gratuity added, because they don't want to chance the fact that their employee is going to sit there for an hour and a half serving 15 people, only to get stiffed.

How about if your job paid you half of your current pay, and said they'd pay you the rest depending on your performance, however, even when you did everything asked of you, they just didn't give you the rest cause they didn't feel like it. Would that be an acceptable situation to you?

[Rippleman]

could be a ****ed off server. If this might cost him his job, I would get the writing tested.