Maybe this is the event that can spark change. If people aren’t tipping, so servers quit their jobs to go work somewhere with better base pay, owners will be left taking the hit.
I’m sure they’ll find some way to make the workers suffer instead, but this could be what’s needed to get rid of corporate “tip culture”.
Unless you have a degree or work a skilled trade, it’s pretty hard to find a job that out-earns serving. Most places, good servers and bartenders are actually making enough to live on (after tips), which you’d only get in retail if you’re management. (Sometimes not even then!)
You have to break into the unskilled office/warehouse sector, but to do that you almost have to know someone there already.
Or (if you’re lucky enough to be able to, most aren’t as they keep you purposefully locked in), restaurant your way through trade school and pick one up. Now you have a new set of problems (you’re locked into “helper” and nobody wants to teach you enough to compete with them, pretend you don’t want your license), but you’re paid better to have those problems, and imo they’re easier to work around than selfish prick customers that want to hurt your boss by giving him money but “help” you by telling you to fuck yourself.
Still hard, but “retail” ain’t it, those are your only options.
That isn’t how it works, the worker quits and the owner hires another person who needs a job bad enough they’re applying there. There’s a revolving door because it’s easy to get hired, there’s no drug tests or background checks or min experience (they say there is but it’s a lie, they’ll hire children), all the people applying need that job now because they need to pay rent (and most in the industry are addicted to something which helps them be exploitable), or they can’t get hired anywhere else because of a criminal record, etc.
Revolving door goes brrrr and the workers either cycle to a “better” restaurant in the same system or finally break free and learn a trade or something, but the system continues exploiting the next individual and always will as long as you are willing to support the exploitation by patronizing the establishments that work this way. The only way to end it is if you the customer stop giving the business itself your money instead patronizing restaurants that pay fair, the business doesn’t care if Susan gets tipped, they got their money for your steak, Susan is the only one who cares about wasting time serving you for free when she needs to make rent to avoid homelessness.
Trust me, I was so close to homeless working in a restaurant job, stuck in an abusive relationship because they paid their half of the rent and without that I couldn’t afford to live anywhere, they ended up leaving before I got out and I was down to the absolute wire but I got a better job and pulled it through, borrowed a few bucks from some friends but made it. The restaurant didn’t change because I left, they just got a new “me.” Probably been through 5 of them by now and there’s more lined up to take the 6th+ place.
Maybe this is the event that can spark change. If people aren’t tipping, so servers quit their jobs to go work somewhere with better base pay, owners will be left taking the hit.
I’m sure they’ll find some way to make the workers suffer instead, but this could be what’s needed to get rid of corporate “tip culture”.
Unless you have a degree or work a skilled trade, it’s pretty hard to find a job that out-earns serving. Most places, good servers and bartenders are actually making enough to live on (after tips), which you’d only get in retail if you’re management. (Sometimes not even then!)
Former food service worker here:
You have to break into the unskilled office/warehouse sector, but to do that you almost have to know someone there already.
Or (if you’re lucky enough to be able to, most aren’t as they keep you purposefully locked in), restaurant your way through trade school and pick one up. Now you have a new set of problems (you’re locked into “helper” and nobody wants to teach you enough to compete with them, pretend you don’t want your license), but you’re paid better to have those problems, and imo they’re easier to work around than selfish prick customers that want to hurt your boss by giving him money but “help” you by telling you to fuck yourself.
Still hard, but “retail” ain’t it, those are your only options.
That isn’t how it works, the worker quits and the owner hires another person who needs a job bad enough they’re applying there. There’s a revolving door because it’s easy to get hired, there’s no drug tests or background checks or min experience (they say there is but it’s a lie, they’ll hire children), all the people applying need that job now because they need to pay rent (and most in the industry are addicted to something which helps them be exploitable), or they can’t get hired anywhere else because of a criminal record, etc.
Revolving door goes brrrr and the workers either cycle to a “better” restaurant in the same system or finally break free and learn a trade or something, but the system continues exploiting the next individual and always will as long as you are willing to support the exploitation by patronizing the establishments that work this way. The only way to end it is if you the customer stop giving the business itself your money instead patronizing restaurants that pay fair, the business doesn’t care if Susan gets tipped, they got their money for your steak, Susan is the only one who cares about wasting time serving you for free when she needs to make rent to avoid homelessness.
Trust me, I was so close to homeless working in a restaurant job, stuck in an abusive relationship because they paid their half of the rent and without that I couldn’t afford to live anywhere, they ended up leaving before I got out and I was down to the absolute wire but I got a better job and pulled it through, borrowed a few bucks from some friends but made it. The restaurant didn’t change because I left, they just got a new “me.” Probably been through 5 of them by now and there’s more lined up to take the 6th+ place.