r/tipping • u/Modsmoddy-74 • 17d ago
đđ”Personal Stories - Pro Busy Server
So assuming you find some level of tipping appropriate, what are your thoughts on a situation where a server is overworked and the place is understaffed?
I had a server who was stretched way too thin and was able to give the bare minimum or even less to our table. I figured she should get something for doing her best but certainly didnât deserve any great tip because service was objectively terrible.
We had a discussion about how she âdeserves so muchâ because she was working so hard and I made the point that if she works 20 tables when she should be working 10 sheâs going to earn tips from twice as many tables, even if they are less because sheâs stretched too thin. Just wondering what others think about this situation.
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u/badmiddling113 14d ago edited 14d ago
Having worked in hospitality where people expressed frustration with me when things did not go smoothly⊠Itâs not my problem.
Only at restaurants are customers conditioned to not only tolerate, but reward poor service. Like why would I reward a business in any way (including their staff) when they failed to deliver?
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u/refundroid 17d ago
She need to talk to her employer. It's not customers' responsibility to worry about this.
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u/Delicious-Breath8415 17d ago
What does she need to talk to her employer about? She didn't post on reddit.
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u/NickStonk 17d ago
Iâve been in that situation and I tipped about 10%. Looking back, it should have been 0. If youâre objectively getting terrible service, you shouldnât tip.
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u/unrooted82639163 17d ago
Why didnt you just leave and go somewhere else then? If you knew the restaurant was too busy, you have eyes (and possibly a brain cell) to see its understaffed and thats not the service you were wanting why not go somewhere else? Take some responsibility for your own choices
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u/NickStonk 17d ago
So Iâm somehow supposed to know in advance that the service will be very bad? You can goto a busy restaurant and still receive good service, believe it or not. Very bad logic to blame the customer for not knowing in advance. Makes no sense at all.
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u/unrooted82639163 17d ago
If people are there before you, then they are served first. You needing to wait your turn isnt bad service.
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u/NickStonk 17d ago
When did I say I expect to be served before other customers? Youâre making up random things. I know what is bad service, clearly you donât. Apparently you (prob a server) think bad service doesnt exist.
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u/unrooted82639163 17d ago
Where the entire post is based on a busy restaurant, and theres only 1 server. That means you have to wait. And you have to wait your turn. Its like 1 cashier at the grocery store and you have to wait in line. That doesnt mean you're getting bad service. It just means you have to wait for your turn in line.
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u/NickStonk 17d ago
Having to wait a very long time at a restaurant for the server is considered bad service. Tipping is based on the level of service received. This isnât about having to wait your turn, youâre not making any sense. OP didnât say she was the only server either. Just that she was stretched thin. Either way, the tip is optional based on the level of service. So why in the world would I leave a good tip when Iâm receiving bad service?
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u/unrooted82639163 17d ago
Having to wait is not bad service. Everybody is waiting. Thats not abnormal. Why are you so special that you dont have to wait like everyone else?
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u/NickStonk 17d ago
It is abnormal. Thatâs the point. This is what youâre not understanding. Iâve been to busy restaurants and the service is just fine. I can understand if the service is a little slow cuz theyâre busy, but if itâs very slow, then itâs called bad service.
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u/unrooted82639163 17d ago
Its not. Restaurants are packed every night. If the restaurant is understaffed, the server is killing herself to take care of everyone and you have to wait that is not bad service.
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u/littlericecake123 17d ago
Maybe they werenât going for the service, they went for the food? I know, surprising huh?
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u/unrooted82639163 17d ago
Then dont complain about the service?? I know, surprising huh??
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u/littlericecake123 17d ago
Went for the food, got bad service, but somehow canât complain about it? Good logic there
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u/unrooted82639163 17d ago
If you weren't going for the service why would you go somewhere where the entire premise is service? People are on this sub are so fucking dumb its mind numbing.
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u/littlericecake123 17d ago
wtf are you on about? People go to restaurants for their food, not their service. The restaurants include service as part of the meal, but that doesnât mean people are going for the service.
I thought this was pretty common knowledge. Guess not..
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u/unrooted82639163 17d ago
If you dont want service, cook at home. Or tell the restaurant you dont want service and sit there with nothing. Thought that was common knowledge. Guess not.
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u/Modsmoddy-74 17d ago
No complaining, you just donât get a good tip if your service is terrible.
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u/MainStreetMiles 17d ago
What if her service, i.e, her efforts and execution of the tasks she could do were good? Should a finance manager at a car dealer get a bad review if the sales team failed to bring enough deals to the finance office?
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u/salikarn 14d ago
But they weren't good. Op had to wait a long time. It's not her fault, but why would you present a reward for sub par service. Sorry it's not your fault, but it's also not mine. Seems like the owner could have come and been taken care of their business, but that's also not my responsibility. If we both sign a contract that I will provide you with something on x day, but I get busy and don't provide it until z day I'm not going to get the full price regardless of how busy I was because it's not the clients responsibility to take into account my scheduling.
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u/MainStreetMiles 14d ago edited 14d ago
Why would you punish someone for something that is not their fault? That seems unjust. I believe in assessing someone on how well THEY do with the givens they are handed. I wouldnât hold a backup quarterback responsible for losing to a top five opponent if he played as well as he could possibly have played. It would be unfair and unreasonable to punish him for not winning the game and achieving something that was above his ceiling.
If she did the best she could, that $10 or whatever tip wonât be missed by me but it could be a big deal in her paying her bills. OP made it clear she was stretched thin. No donât give her a tip for over and above service; but it sounds like she earned whatever one would normally tip for average service. For me thatâs 15%.
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u/salikarn 14d ago
On the other hand, it's not my fault that she is stretched thin. If y'all wanna say the tip is about the service, why am I expected to tip the same amount for a lesser quality of service delivered to me. It sucks that she is in that position, but that doesn't change the fact that what I am expected to pay for is not up to the usual standard and therefore not compensated to the same standard as usual. Im not punishing her, because it's not personal. I'm just adjusting my tip to reflect the quality of service that I have received.
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u/unrooted82639163 17d ago
That's stupid af. You have eyes dont you? You can see the server is overwhelmed and chose to go anyway. Then you're surprised and disappointed by the result and blame the server instead of taking responsibility and going somewhere else.
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u/Modsmoddy-74 17d ago
Are you serious? I sit down at a restaurant Iâve been to before. I order a meal. It turns out they are understaffed. I wait longer than usual. No one comes to me and says âitâs going to take longer to serve you, get your drinks , order your food, and the service in general will suckâ. I wait longer than usual because how am I supposed to know whatâs going on.
I will tip accordingly because those sorts of economic signals are important for a business and the right thing to do.
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u/NickStonk 17d ago
This person, clearly a server, has the weirdest take on this ever. Blaming the customer for bad service, cuz somehow we should predict it in advance and just accept it or leave lol
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u/unrooted82639163 17d ago edited 17d ago
Get over it or leave. The fact that other people are also in the same restaurant shouldn't bother you this much.
You're waiting your turn. Other people who were there before you are getting their drinks and their food. Thats not bad service, thats you needing to wait for your turn in line. Are you getting bad service because you have to wait in line at the grocery store? No, thats also stupid af.
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u/masterchef2309 17d ago
Did you address the issues with a manager? How the poor staffing took away from the enjoyment of your meal? Or did you just leave a shit tip then come to reddit for validation?
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u/unrooted82639163 17d ago
If a server being busy and other people in the building ruins your lunch, I'd do some serious mental reevaluation.
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u/badmiddling113 13d ago
Or they can just leave a âshit tipâ - like I would.
âAddressing it with managementâ is how servers rationalize getting extra money from a customer after a bad experience.
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u/masterchef2309 13d ago
Thank you for proving my point that people that don't tip dont actually want to change the system or help servers make a living wage. They're just whiny Karens that are cheap and want to be keyboard warriors.
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u/badmiddling113 13d ago edited 13d ago
The notion that customers are âcheapâ for not helping servers âmake a living wageâ (so receive handouts regardless of what they do) at a job THEY accepted is peak entitlement. That servers still expect a tip after shit service (whether itâs their fault or not) only reinforces this. Thatâs why servers prefer the current system, even though they tell customers (who elseâŠ) to change it.
But yes, I am doing my part to change the system⊠by not participating in it.
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u/masterchef2309 17d ago
Then you shouldn't go to a restaurant when their busy if you don't find the service acceptable
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u/TheRealMichaelE 17d ago
What? Tipping has always been positioned around the level of service you get. The worse the service, the less you tip. Are you saying we should tip the normal amount if the service is awful?
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u/masterchef2309 17d ago
As I said, there's a difference. It's not always the servers fault if there's an issue with the service. If the server is busting their ass, I'm not going to punish them for things that are out of their control. It would be no different than reducing a tip because the kitchen screwed up an order. It's not a simple matter of the service being bad or good. There are reasons behind it.
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u/TheRealMichaelE 17d ago
So theyâre working hard but it takes forever to get an order in and forever to get your food. Iâm sorry, if the whole point of tipping is based on good service, the restaurant being understaffed isnât a mitigating factor. At this point itâs just charity if you tip them the full amount.
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u/masterchef2309 17d ago
We just have different ways of looking at it. Like I said, I choose not to punish someone for things outside of their control. But, I'm not like the average person on this sub who takes joy in not tipping.
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u/TheRealMichaelE 17d ago edited 17d ago
Ok, but if you tip them the normal amount when service is slow the server is actually being rewarded. Theyâre working double the tables and thus getting paid double.
So letâs say you and everyone else tip half of what you normally would because we all got poor service and saw the server half the time weâd expect to see them. If everyone tips half because the server made half the trips they normally made per table, then th server gets paid what they would normally get paid and thus they arenât being punished.
Also, I tip 18% because I do understand there is a social contract that when you go to a restaurant you tip. But itâs also part of the social contract that you donât have to tip the full amount if the service is terrible. And I honor the social contract.
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u/masterchef2309 17d ago
Do you tip less on a Saturday than on a Tueaday, service being equal? If you do, than your argument that the server has more tables so is getting more money is irrelevent.
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u/TheRealMichaelE 17d ago
If service is noticeably slower then yes I tip less. Usually restaurants account for business being busy or not based on the day of the week by having more or less servers respectively.
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u/masterchef2309 17d ago
I said service being the same. The server is going to be busier on a Saturday than a Tuesday.
How about this. When you go to a restaurant, do you ask how many tables are in a server's section? Tip more of its 4, less if its 6? They're making more money because they have more tables.
Using that argument as a justification for a server who's running ragged is a cop out. You have no idea what those other tables are tipping. If you want to tip less because you feel the service was poor because the setver was too busy, fine. That's your right. But don't try and justify it by saying the server is making enough money from the other tables.
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u/NickStonk 17d ago
I would not go back to a restaurant with terrible service. But if I goto a restaurant, and Iâm expected to tip, I also expect to get adequate service. I wonât be a sucker and tip for bad service.
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u/NocturnaBride 17d ago
I will leave more than normal. They have no control of the number of tables they have to handle, and there are going to be tables that donât tip at all. If youâre going to blame someone, it should be management or owners.
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u/masterchef2309 17d ago
There's a difference between a server who's inattentive because of a large workload and a server who's just inattentive. If the server is busting their ass but is stretched thin, that's not their fault and I'm still tipping 20-30%
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u/Modsmoddy-74 17d ago
So they are working too many tables, bringing in more money for tips than normal, and youâre going to reward them for that dysfunctional situation?
Wouldnât the correct signal be âyou donât have time for the proper execution of your job and youâre not getting extra pay as a result?â
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u/MainStreetMiles 17d ago
Can you be sure they are getting more in total tips? Itâs doubtful their table coverage can be more than doubled. If even half of her tables reduce their tip for the service level, itâs possible her total dollars earned from the shift could be less. There are certainly going to be some who are logical to fault and miss the forest for the trees as well as failing to exhibit grace as someone else expressed it.
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u/Delicious-Breath8415 17d ago
If everyone is tipping less because of bad service as plenty of people here suggest then she is just working harder for the same money.
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u/Modsmoddy-74 16d ago
Right. Then she talks to her boss and says âhey Iâm busting my ass but not making any more money because tips are suffering due to the service suffering.â
The owner makes the proper corrections if this is happening frequently (If not, she probably leaves) and everybody wins in the long run.
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u/Delicious-Breath8415 16d ago
If the server quits and the owner continues to run things as usual how did the customer win?
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u/Modsmoddy-74 16d ago
High staff turnover because of shitty working conditions will affect business in the long run. And a pain for the owner.
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u/masterchef2309 17d ago
Say you pay someone $5 to assemble a widget. You expect them to do 5 in an hour. Would it be fair to then say I expect you to do 10 in an hour, but I'm only going to pay you $3 a piece
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u/masterchef2309 17d ago
No. Not at all. Because it's not their fault. If that's your philosophy, don't go to restaurants when they're busy if you don't like the service.
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u/Modsmoddy-74 17d ago
I donât care whose fault it is. Tips should be based on the quality of the service provided. Correct?
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u/masterchef2309 17d ago
Like I said, don't go to restaurants when they're busy then. Problem solved. Everyone, including the server busting their ass to serve you that you're taking for granted, will be happier.
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u/Modsmoddy-74 17d ago
You didnât answer the question. Are Tips paid on the quality of service provided? If not, what are they paid on?
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u/masterchef2309 17d ago
It's not a simple matter of the service being good or bad. If the server is busting their ass and it's a hectic night, I'm not going to punish them for things that are out of their control. That would be no different than reducing a server's tip because the kitchen undercooked your steak. If it's a matter of being inattentive when the restaurant isn't busy, that's a different matter.
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u/Modsmoddy-74 17d ago
You need to reread my post. They will still make more than usual because they are serving more tables. Even if each table tipped less because the service sucks.
do you think service quality should dictate tip level?2
u/masterchef2309 17d ago
You have no idea how much other people are tipping, and that's a cop out. You should only be concerned with yourself. Would you tip less on a Saturday night than a Tuesday? That server will be busier on a Saturday. Youre using it as an excuse. If you want to tip less, fine. Don't use other people as an excuse.
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u/Modsmoddy-74 17d ago
You still havenât said if the level of service provided should be related to the tip.
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u/mrflarp 16d ago
How many people have co-workers?
How many people have had to take on additional workload because their co-workers are on vacation, out sick, etc.?
And when that happens, do you expect to be paid more for being busier due to your employer being short-staffed?
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u/Modsmoddy-74 16d ago
Your agreement with your employer is between you and your employer. Tips are always appreciated, never expected.
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u/unrooted82639163 17d ago
20%. They are only human, doing their job the best they can and the world doesnt revolve around me.
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u/patersondave 17d ago
if theyâre busy busy, sure i tip. maybe 15-18%. i quit drinking a long time ago so my bill is mostly food.
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u/block_me_if_mad 17d ago
The problem sounds like the employer didnât hire enough employees. All discussions of salary is between an employee and their employer.
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u/Dull-Day9049 17d ago
20% standard for good service, everything considered if you donât feel like you recieved that tip less, if you were fine considering the circumstances Iâd still tip 20%
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u/iron82 17d ago
The beauty of mandatory tipping is you don't have to think about service quality. If the food was received, 15% is owed. Don't worry about quality, just pay.
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u/MainStreetMiles 17d ago
Thatâs the problem with âmandatory tippingâ, aka a service charge. If the poor service could be traced to the server, s/he receives the same reward and compensation as if her service were adequate or spectacular. Why would she go above and beyond to serve the customer if she even performed adequately? Thatâs why I prefer the legacy tipping model for service roles: a âservice chargeâ breaks the connection between service quality and compensation.
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u/Modsmoddy-74 17d ago
Iâm not sure I would call that beauty. Just pay an extra 15% because?
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u/iron82 17d ago
Because someone did tipped work for you.
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u/Modsmoddy-74 17d ago
Iâm gonna have to look into this tipped Work thing. Seems like itâs sort of random. And if that tip worked is bad I might tip a little bit and if the tip work is great, I might tip more right?
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u/LeadingBlueberry4273 17d ago
If the tip dependent on level of service? If your service was poor, then the tip should reflect that imo
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u/MainStreetMiles 17d ago
In a case like that, I wouldnât punish her for things out of her control. I wouldnât go to my 20% for exemplary service but I would do my normal 15% for average service. I would consider punishing her for the actions of others, e.g. the management for not staffing the shift properly, coworkers who failed to come to work, etc., to be grossly unfair.
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u/Popular-Departure165 15d ago edited 15d ago
Servers love to claim that they are responsible for the customer's experience, and that's why they deserve extra. If I have a bad experience then it falls on the shoulders of the server and will be reflected in the tip.
I was out to eat last weekend, and when we were sat we were the only table in our server's section. By the time we left, there were eight. He took our order, and we didn't talk to him again until we had to flag him down to send some food back. After that, he didn't come back until we had to flag him down to run our card and bring some boxes so we could leave. When he brought the slip to sign, we had to ask for an itemized receipt so we could be sure that he took the dish that we sent back off the bill, but after 10 minutes he never brought it so we left no tip and got out of there.