Ricardo Ferreira wrote:


Why don't people just get the fair value for their work as a salary? It
would be much easier, clear, and fair for everyone.

I've always seen tipping as either a type of charity (from the customer to
the employee) or as exploitation (both of the employee by the boss, or of
the customer by the employee).

Ricardo,
TIPS = "To Insure Prompt Service" The original rationale was to
make servers' income dependent on the satisfaction of the customer. It
does strike me as condescending and paternalistic, almost relegating
servers to a serf-like relationship to the patrons. Why can't servers
be hired and fired on the basis of their job performance just as other
employees? I suspect that the major obstacle to changing the rules is
the restaurant management, who would have to pay much higher payroll tax
(right now paying income tax on tips is the responsibility of the server).

Mark Lipton
(who loves dining in Europe where such considerations are moot)