Tipped-Employees' Misplaced Frustrations and Anger Is Just Not Right

This hub is in response to the comments posted on the following hub by Jake4102:

http://jake4102.hubpages.com/hub/Tipping-Why-I-Hate-It

I initially posted it as a comment, but who knows if it will be approved or cut off because of its length. So I'm going to quickly make my comment into a hub.

Out of the Mouths of Tipped Employees

I find it interesting that people feel it okay and justifiable to call other people "jerks," "bad people" and "despicable" when a person does not tip. Because why doesn't the name calling apply to the company who feels a server's job is less than minimum wage? I bet you, if the $2.13 wasn't a standard, they would pay servers even less than that. I would even go as far as to say, if they could get away with putting the sole responsibility of paying their employees on their customers they would. If they could make those jobs volunteer work they would even do that.

Perception Blindness

The truth, that many are blinded by, is that the company is the only ones being cheap and disrespectful to their tipped employees. Why on earth does their cashier or hostess get paid more than the one who is responsible for serving the customer "hand in foot"? But the tipped employee didn't think about that, did they? Of course not! They are just that loyal of a slave to their cheap master, to even see it that way. Always making and keeping the master looking like a saint, right? While everyone else who don't tip or tip lowly are devils. Wow! Talk about being brainwashed.

Nugget of Wisdom

WISE UP! You can only brainwash people who just don't know any better, in other words, stupid minds. You cannot and will never be able to brainwash wise minds.

Preying on the Weak

The company (the master) knows that stupid people will always voluntarily continue to be their slaves and that they will also turn around to blame the customers of the company for not paying their wage which in essence helps the complaining employee pay their bills, habits, and addictions. Therefore, this tipped slave will never be the one to push for change in higher wages in society. This is exactly what companies need...hush puppies. I know it's a food, but I'm not talking about food.

The 'Monetarily Reward Mediocrity' Challenge

What's tripped out, is more times than not, the waitstaff's servitude barely even fulfills their job description. Since when do we reward -- and financially reward -- for B or C grades? If some of you have kids, next time your child performs at a B or C level when you KNOW they could do A or beyond, give them a nice financial reward. Mediocrity should never be rewarded and especially with money. The more it is, the more people will not change for the better and history has proven this in all areas of life.

Servitude Has No Limits

And another thing, people act like servitude is limited to just tipped employees like waitstaff, bartenders, etc. That alone lets me know you all are indeed brainwashed. Servitude is in every single profession and non-profession. It's life. When you do something for someone you have just served them. The positions are not called servers, but everyone serves someone. Therefore, everyone has experience in what it takes to serve someone. It's not always easy and it's not always hard. So tipped employees since you are acting like you are being victimized, stop acting like you are the only victims of not being tipped financially and handsomely for serving others. Next time someone opens the door for you, give them a dollar, because they didn't have to hold the door open for you. If you think a "thank you" is sufficient, then next time you serve someone on the job, then so should a "thank you" be sufficient for you. You treat people how you want to be treated.

Weak-minded Equals No Fuss

Companies prey on the ignorant and weak-minded because they know they will accept $2.13 or less an hour without a fuss. Check this out, it's no different than what we do when we outsource our workloads to third world countries and pay them pennies. I'm sure some of you tipped employees can't stand that, but that's exactly how you are being treated.

Shame Companies & Yourself NOT Customers

Shame on the company for not paying the ones they hire what they are due. Servitude can be -- not always -- tough work. But shame on you, too, tipped employee for succumbing to such bad treatment by agreeing to be that company's "fortunate slave" (because you are actually paid something even if it is low). Then to make matters even worse, you become this cheap company's supporter and front line defense by only blaming and name calling customers? Seriously?! It was you and your employers who agreed on such a low wage.

You know what? When was the last time you fought for increase in hourly wages for tipped jobs? When was the last time you even asked your employer - who said you and your servitude skills are only worth $2.13 an hour - for a raise? If employees and people with your mindset continue to think like a dumb slave, they will continue to get away with paying less than minimum wage.

Nugget of Wisdom

Wise up tipped employees of $2.13 an hour (give or take a little). Know your own worth! If you don't, then why on earth should anyone even want to tip you? Why would anyone want to tip you even more than the hourly wage you accepted from your employer?

Open up your darn eyes and mind. See tipping for what it really is. And, stop being your cheap master's (your employer's) fool.

The Apple Doesn't Fall Too Far From the Tree

On the note that you deem non-tippers negatively, you are no different. Because since you know what it's like to serve others, every single time someone lifts a finger or speaks a word of encouragement to your behind -- this is serving, too -- you better stop being a cheapskate, selfish, despicable jerk and give them a nice financial tip. Serving will NEVER be limited to just the restaurant/culinary industry. And, you remember that!

You may think what I said was redundant, but for some people it's going to take repetition to bring forth a positive change and open one's eye to the truth. If you are a fast learner, then good for you!!

For those with an ear to hear let them hear.

Who I am to Speak Such Words

My Experience as a Restaurant Server:

My first real job outside of summer-hire (military thing), I once served as a waitstaff member before when I was in high school and was paid $2.13. Within just a couple of weeks of being hired, I was give a 10 cent raise. Other waitstaff wasn't too happy about that because they had been there years and hadn't received one. The raise was a surprise to me because I had just started and didn't even think about the idea of raises (yeah, just stupid...smh). Anyway, out of being surprised I spoke my thoughts aloud about not even asking for a raise while my ex-coworkers were right there, which probably added to the fuel. So I was hired to be on the waitstaff/a server for $2.13/hr (increased to $2.23 as described above), to take customer orders and bring it to them and check up on them while they were eating, but my list of duties did not stop there...

I also was instructed to do and carry out the roles that other restaurants had positions for (which I thought, for some stupid reason, were responsibilities that all waitstaff should already be doing - just brainwashed). Here are the roles I was instructed by management to do:

• Host/seater
• Bartender (when I became of age to serve alcohol and even though I didn't want to serve alcohol to people they made me)
• Food stocker
• Busser
• Cashier (for all customers including providing tip to drivers from their deliveries)
• Dishwasher
• Order taker by phone, window and walk-ins, too
• Clean the bathrooms
• Close and clean the restaurant

All that for just $2.23 an hour. But I thought this was normal. At that time, minimum wage was at $5 and some change (I'm an early 80's kid). After graduating, I moved to another city. And it was then, when I learned that what I did was, in fact, not the typical job duties of a waitstaff.

I was still kind of stupid and tried to rationalize that the company I worked for just didn't have the money to pay for all those different types of positions. Did I just voluntarily cover for my ex-employer's terrible treatment of me and the rest of the waitstaff? The thing was I knew my job description, but when the manager said to do it, I thought I had to or I thought maybe I overlooked it in my job description. I was so incredibly ignorant when it came to things of this nature.

There were times management and supervisors would be in the front and doing absolutely nothing. They were paid the salary and could've pulled their weight a bit more instead of having the waitstaff do all these tasks while also waiting on the customers. Don't even get me started on sanitation changing from one role to the next.

My Experience as a Business Owner:

A Hero is Not Bashed, But Set Upon A Pedestal

Aside from being the "fortunate slave," *rolling my eyes* I have also been on the HR and accounting end of a business - my own business. So, I have hired, fired, and been the one to cut the checks. And, while I don't like to admit this, but I hired dumb people, people who were willing to accept pennies for hours worth of work. I didn't want to do the work and sometimes just didn't have the time to, so I would find (I knew where to go) those who were willing to and at a low rate, put up an ad and wait for them to bite, which wasn't long. Was I being greedy, stingy, selfish, with my money by not paying my workers more? Not all the time, but yeah I was. But I'm sure they didn't see it that way, because they agreed to the wage when they could've asked for more or turned down my offer. The simple fact that I employed them, gives me their loyalty and I look like their hero.

Knowing the Mindset of a Low-paying & Tipped Slave

How do I know this? Because I was once like them before I had my own business. So I know the mindset. I know that there will always be people who will work for pennies. And, these comments on topics of tipping proves they will continue to exist in this world. The last time I hired someone for pennies was two years ago or so. Will I do it again, I'll do my best not to. Shame on me when I do this, though; they're just easy targets, especially in this day and age. And, they won't shame me, because at least I've put some kind of money in their pockets.

I know me saying this may encourage those who never knew how to take advantage of people and their time, but that's not why I'm exposing the mindset - at all. I'm trying to wake up those low paying and tipped employees who have the wool blanketing their eyes by their own naivety which is allowing their minds to be brainwashed and negatively influenced by their cheap employers and then turn around to take it out on those who never hired you -- the customers. If anything is wrong regarding this tipping issue, it's the tipped employees with their warped and ignorant views and sayings on non-tippers which is just flat out wrong and there is no sugarcoating that.

I just cannot stress this enough:

Serving is in every aspect of life, NOT just your tipped job. So as a tipped employee, you should financially tip (not cheaply either) any and everyone who serves you in any shape, form, or fashion. You should tip me, because I just served you whether you asked for it or not. Yes, that's much like how some customers feel when they go into a restaurant. Like others, I don't want a server, but am forced to have one should I want to eat at that restaurant that hires them - shame, shame, shame.

Forced to Have a Server

On that note, when I go out to eat, which is seldom (not even to fast food joints), the only reason why I do is because it happens to be a day that I really just don't want to cook...just eat. So what do you do when you don't want to do something and have the means to find a replacement? Find someone who will. And, that is all I want...just a chef to cook my food, everything else I want, can, and willing to do on my own. The less hands touching and mouths breathing over my food, the better for my health. If it means you are out of a low-paying and tipped job, then it's a win-win situation.

My health is a heck of a lot more important and I don't want to be spending my money on getting back to a healthy state (keep what I said in its context). Waitstaff do go to work sick because they NEED that money. And, some of them think it's just a soar throat, when in fact it is the onset of something worse if they don't stay at home and rest to take care of it...and yet you call non-tippers selfish, despicable, jerks, and the list goes on. Let me not go off on that right now because that's a whole new topic. It's just safer to prepare your own food, anyway, which is why I go out to eat less than 3 times a year.

Your Frustrations and Anger are Misplaced (stay off jury duty and helping someone solve a problem)

This is the world we live in. All the best to you who choose tipped-wage jobs, but don't put down others for not getting on that bandwagon with you except employers who need you to help them keep money in their own pockets while you suffer the hard work. It's no one else's fault, but your own, that you're also letting your neediness rob you of your worth.