The unintended – or even intended – consequences of the liberal push to raise our state’s already-highest-in-the-nation minimum wage are starting to materialize. And it doesn’t look good for the workers who were allegedly going to benefit from this push by the labor bosses at places like the Service Employee International Union (SEIU).
As Shift reported, Ivar’s in Seattle has raised menu prices and changed its tipping policy to deal with the $15 minimum wage. The restaurant is telling customers that, because service is included in the pricing of the menus, they no longer need to tip their servers or bartenders. Customers are welcome to do so, but it’s not expected.
As restaurants across Seattle raise prices in order to account for higher costs due to the $15 minimum wage, some customers are asking why they should leave a tip. In fact, a certain photo posted on Reddit spurred quite a debate on the very subject. Check out the photo below:
The card, left at a bar or restaurant, reads: “Why I don’t tip in Seattle.” And, as King 5 News puts it, “essentially tells the server that as food costs are driven up by wage increases, the customer chooses to no longer leave a tip.”
Whatever side of the debate you agree with, the Washington Restaurant Association (WRA) cautions patience for customers and businesses. The reality is that “businesses experiment and look for ways to adjust to these higher wage costs.” Certainly, “tipping is not untouchable, and that it should be part of any discussion about changes that restaurants might be making.”
… our state’s already-highest-in-the-nation minimum wage…
Which is a result of Initiative 688, enacted by us voters in 1998.
Whatever side of the debate you agree with, the Washington Restaurant Association (WRA) cautions patience for customers and businesses.
The WRA helped to write the “No on I-688” statement in 1998, which warned that voting for raising Washington State’s minimum wage would (among other ill effects) cause prices to rise out of control. Given the low inflation rate since then, is there any evidence the WRA has learned anything in the intervening years?
Why do the pro management people always go after the working person? Can’t they do with a little less on their paychecks? People do deserve to have a livable wage, don’t they?
No one “deserves” or has an “entitlement” to much beyond a heartbeat, oxygen, and brain activity
I personally like to tip at least 20%, but the fact that tipping is essentially considered mandatory in the US is silly. I don’t think most people realize that tipped workers in some state make as little as about $2/hour. It’s a way for businesses to keep advertised prices artificially low.
If I was working as a waiter/bartender, I would much rather have a guaranteed wage and customers that don’t feel like they have to tip each time. If they think the service is exceptional and want to tip, great… but it shouldn’t be expected.
So, not tipping in Seattle is not a bad thing IMO.
I’m fourth generation restaurant family (who studied hard and escaped), we owned one restaurant in Edmonds where servers were paid less than minimum wage, but it wasn’t less than $2/hour in the 80s, I think it was 20% less. All of the other restaurants my family has owned and managed paid standard minimum wage to all tipped employees. My dad closed his last restaurant in Eastern Washington five years ago, labor costs were always the highest expense, but every year with the increasing minimum wage labor ate more of the revenue. More than 40 people lost their jobs including servers who averaged 20-30 hours a week and made more than $50 an hour with tips.
20 years of food service. Ten as waiter, ten as cook. I actually like the pooled tips. Food quality is part of the service and good cooks should receive some of the gratuity for their hard work, but in seattle now, I’m decreasing my tip everywhere, eliminating it entirely at places that have made the leap to $15 all at once, like Ivars, eliminating it for to go orders, and places like coffee stands, reducing my tip by the amount the price is increased: I used to tip 75 cents at my coffee stand. They raised prices 50 cents so now I tip 25 cents. Keeps my total cost the same, because I’m getting the same cup of coffee, and since I make more than $11 an hour, my wages are the same and I don’t earn any more.
So before the rise in wages, a waitress was making lets say $10 /hr with an average of $10-$15 an hr in tips. If you worked really hard and gave great service, you could make more, or if it was a really busy day and all your tables were full, you could double that amount. So adding this up in my simple mind, that’s a good $20-$50 an hr. compared to $15. And I bet the server got to eat for free during their shift, and I bet that’s gone too. Free bus pass? Gone. Some semblance of assistance with health care? Gone. Well, I guess if the goal of the city was to hurt the middle class, they did a darn good job here.
We stopped tipping at establishments that “pool” the tips. To us that is socialism and discourages outstanding service. Knowing you’re going to get a portion of the daily tips whether you work hard or not doesn’t promote the capitalism and great service we believe in. This $15 an hour is just the next step. I agree with the card. I’m free to spend my money in any way I wish and tipping isn’t always the way.
I definitely do not tip at Starbucks or a subway I think I find that ridiculous especially now with the minimum wage some places I still tip well but in Seattle with the starts in 20 bucks forget it I won’t be tipping no more
When I used to wait tables in my 20s, I made $50 or more an hour with tips. Of course back in my day we had this thing called the free market.
… Ivar’s in Seattle has raised menu prices and changed its tipping policy to deal with the $15 minimum wage. The restaurant is telling customers that, because service is included in the pricing of the menus, they no longer need to tip their servers or bartenders. Customers are welcome to do so, but it’s not expected.
The Seattle P-I reports on how things are going at Ivar’s:
Revenue has soared, supportive customers are leaving additional tips even though they don’t need to, and servers and bartenders are on pace to increase their annual pay by thousands, with wages for a few of the best compensated approaching $80,000 a year.