tip pools

There was an interesting entry at http://www.waiterrant.net a couple of weeks ago about a New York restaurant gettng sued over mandatory tip pooling.

[Robin Garr]

There was an interesting entry at http://www.waiterrant.net a couple of weeks ago about a New York restaurant gettng sued over mandatory tip pooling.

Great catch! And lots and lots of comments.

Here's a direct link to the story

If I remember correctly, the Outback that used to be in Middletown got in quite a bit of trouble over this practice. I remember my roommate at the time getting a $600-700 check to reimburse him because of the practice.

yeah...I gotta say, I think tip pooling is bad enough (between all servers, of course I'm happy to tip bussers and bar)...but management should not have anything to do with that!

[Robin Garr]

yeah...I gotta say, I think tip pooling is bad enough (between all servers, of course I'm happy to tip bussers and bar)...but management should not have anything to do with that!

Oops, I didn't clarify that. Tip pooling among all servers is a really bad idea. It doesn't create any incentive to bust your butt and actually might inspire those inclined to slack off to feel comfortable doing so. That's a whole 'nuther matter than tipping out the bussers, bartender and people who work with you. And from a management standpoint, it's just stupid.

agreed!

I work at a restaurant that requires tipped employees to put a percentage of daily sales into a shared tip pool that is spread out among bussers, bartenders and expos....which is fine but I recently discovered that the house also keeps a percentage of this pool....Is that legal and or ethical???

I would be interested to hear what owners and managers think of this practice....

Two words, lawsuit or quit. That is awful business. Do share the name of the place so that I never go there....if I ever go where ever you are now. ha!

yeah...I gotta say, I think tip pooling is bad enough (between all servers, of course I'm happy to tip bussers and bar)...but management should not have anything to do with that!

Oops, I didn't clarify that. Tip pooling among all servers is a really bad idea. It doesn't create any incentive to bust your butt and actually might inspire those inclined to slack off to feel comfortable doing so. That's a whole 'nuther matter than tipping out the bussers, bartender and people who work with you. And from a management standpoint, it's just stupid.

i disagree... i work in a tip pool. i feel that it helps me maintain a more predictable salary. i never have to worry about making less than a certain amount of money each night. there is less friction/ competition among staff members and our level of teamwork is much greater than in places where it is 'everyone for him/herself.' with tip sharing, i consider that every customer in the restaurant is mine!
i guess we are lucky to have a management team that helps us weed out the slackers. if someone is not cutting it, they just don't get the shifts. pretty simple.

[Robin Garr]

i disagree... i work in a tip pool. i feel that it helps me maintain a more predictable salary. i never have to worry about making less than a certain amount of money each night. there is less friction/ competition among staff members and our level of teamwork is much greater than in places where it is 'everyone for him/herself.' with tip sharing, i consider that every customer in the restaurant is mine!
i guess we are lucky to have a management team that helps us weed out the slackers. if someone is not cutting it, they just don't get the shifts. pretty simple.

Krista, thanks for the voice of experience. Your argument makes sense, and helps us see that there's more than one side to every story. I do think that the benefits of pooling might vary depending on the nature of the restaurant. I think (from the server's perspective, I mean) I'd still be opposed to pooling at a successful, busy high-end restaurant where a server who hustles and does a great job can make a pretty good living. In that situation, I'd be very resentful of having to share. At a midrange, family-casual spot where tipping isn't quite so lucrative, the advantages of consistency and predictability that you mention might make a real difference in my attitude.

Do you agree? Or do I still need additional edumification?

i do see your point. and i was a little skeptical when it was offered as an option at the restaurant where i work. we have been doing it pretty successfully for over a year now. and i think we all feel that we are making a good living. i have also seen far less turnover than in most places where i have worked.
of course there are certainly downsides to the system. you have fewer of those nights where you walk out with a small fortune. but for me, it just feels a little more secure to know that my money will be consistent.

I'm new here to L'ville and am so pleased to have found this forum. This topic is very close to my heart as I am a participant in a law suit against a major steakhouse chain dealing with the issue of management taking our tips. I am happy to say that we have won the case and damages are now being assesed.
While I believe management has no right to tips, I have no problem sharing my tips with the other workers. Without bartenders, bussers, and runners I couldn't do my job nearly as well, and I believe that at the end of the night I am not paying them out of "my" tips but I am divving up "our" tips.
Pooling an entire restaurant is another matter. I have found it to work well in small places where everryone is of the same caliber, or has complimentary skills. In large stores it often feels that no matter how hard I might work, how high my check average might be, and how high my tip percentage is it gets lost in a pool of mediocrity. Being average or below are the traits that are rewarded.
By the way, is this the place to ask about restaurants in town that hire more mature servers?

[Robin Garr]

By the way, is this the place to ask about restaurants in town that hire more mature servers?

Welcome to the forum, Gary! Glad you found your way here, and thanks for your thoughts. Major steakhouse chain, eh? That narrows it down a little ...

As for your post about hiring, you're welcome to post anywhere, but you might get better results if you post it separately under a meaningful subject line - a change of subject at the end of a long "thread" might go un-noticed.

In large stores it often feels that no matter how hard I might work, how high my check average might be, and how high my tip percentage is it gets lost in a pool of mediocrity. Being average or below are the traits that are rewarded.
By the way, is this the place to ask about restaurants in town that hire more mature servers?

for what it is worth, i don't find any of my coworkers 'mediocre.' we are all unique with varied approaches. i feel that in service, just like food, there are many different styles which appeal to many different types of people. that is what makes a tip pool successful. like i said earlier, how could a guest go wrong when their tip is paying for every server in the room?!?!?!

In large stores it often feels that no matter how hard I might work, how high my check average might be, and how high my tip percentage is it gets lost in a pool of mediocrity. Being average or below are the traits that are rewarded.
By the way, is this the place to ask about restaurants in town that hire more mature servers?

for what it is worth, i don't find any of my coworkers 'mediocre.' we are all unique with varied approaches. i feel that in service, just like food, there are many different styles which appeal to many different types of people. that is what makes a tip pool successful. like i said earlier, how could a guest go wrong when their tip is paying for every server in the room?!?!?!

I don't get this. I thought the point of a tipping system was to financially reward excellent service. It may be a odd system, that that is what it is for, no? If tips are shared across all servers, then it no longer functions this way. This may be a good system, but it doesn't sound like the "tip" system.

Gary F, you're got PM (look at the top of your screen.)