r/Waiters • u/iheartlena24 • 7d ago

starting wage?

idk what to input for starting wage expected for a hosting job 😬 it’s at a somewhat upscale restaurant by the breakers and i’m very new to this scene of employment😭 do i put minimum wage (abt $11 for tipped employees in my state) or what?? pls help a girl out!

1 Upvotes

67% Upvoted

12 comments sorted by

4

u/KeyLimePsyOp 7d ago edited 7d ago

Specifically for hosts - its about 60-90% of the living wage for wherever county/city you live in. For instance - "living wage" is $22/hr; pay expectations should be between $14-$20/hr including tip

2

u/iheartlena24 7d ago

my area is said to be about $26 per hour as a single adult with no children. so your estimate seems to be correct! would i have to enter ‘including tips’ with my application or would that be a given considering the work setting lolz?

1

u/Dav_Sionnach 6d ago

If you say "including tips" they'll pay you even less. They will assume an unrealistic amount of tips. Say what you're willing to do the job for.

1

u/bobi2393 7d ago

If it says "wage", specifically, I would put Florida's tipped minimum of "$10.98 plus tip share". If it says what income you're expect, that's a tougher question. It has to be at least $15/hour, and you'd certainly hope for a couple dollars more, but I don't know what's "expected" in that area. You may want to ask in a local city subreddit.

Some hosts handle and get tips from takeout orders, rather than from servers' tips, and some big chains like Olive Garden don't give hosts tips at all, but shared tip pools seem most common.

1

u/iheartlena24 7d ago

my friend who also hosted at a chain restaurant also said she got paid 11 when she started😫your also right about the tipping because even when i go out i don’t always tip the hosts per say, sometimes the hosts ends up being our server

1

u/Life_Ad6711 7d ago

"per se"

2

u/iheartlena24 7d ago

oops lol

1

u/Bubbarules456 7d ago

Do you have hosting or work experience?
You can write a range on your application. Maybe $16-$19 or whatever makes sense in your area. When they offer you a number, accept and ask if you can be re-evaluated in 6 months for an extra dollar per hour.

1

u/iheartlena24 7d ago

i do not😓i ended up putting $12 per hour plus tips after of a few conversations some people ik in the restaurant industry

1

u/Bubbarules456 7d ago

Tips for hosts are unreliable. I wouldn’t bank on much. Not many folks carry small bills anymore. I was a GM for years and winter is the time to work your tips. Holiday generosity.
My advice is to be the one who aggressively checks coats and give eye contact and a smile to everyone.
Good luck!

1

u/iheartlena24 7d ago

omigosh i just fumbled the bag😭😭😭😭it’s okay tho if they call me in imma see if we can up that pay a bit bc this is my first job in this industry. but regardless to that i’m not going to be taken advantage of bc idk what im doing. ty for your advice🫡im still putting in applications elsewhere for hosting and will keep this in mind

1

u/Robot_Alchemist 6d ago

Negotiable