Going out to eat is not a cheap ordeal, especially if you’re dining as family. Many people feel that paying for their meal is enough, and that adding a significant tip is not really necessary, after all, they’re paying for the food they’ve ordered anyway, right?
Well, the truth is that it isn’t that simple. The service industry’s method involves paying servers very low wages as it is expected that they’ll make up the difference (and hopefully more) from tips. This is meant to encourage servers to work to the best of their abilities, but unfortunately it does not always pan out that way. One Texas bartender shared a photo that shook many people’s attitude about tipping servers.
Aaliyah Cortez took to TikTok to share a video sharing just how ridiculously low her paycheck is before taking tips into account. She shared “So this is why you should always tip your bartenders and servers, anyone who waits on your, or provides a service for you.”
She explained that the paycheck was sharing reflected 70 hours of work at an hourly rate of $2.13. After taxes, Medicare, and social security, her total paycheck came out to a grand total of $9.28 only. Yes, for 70 hours of work.
Cortez continued: “Of course, I got tips, but this is what I got for my hourly. This is why you tip….It’s not right that we have to do this, but I wanted to shed some light on the issue and inform the public about the importance of tipping.”
Her video quickly went viral and currently has over 99,000 likes and more than 3000 comments.
She also explained to the Daily Mail what she thinks can help with this issue: “I would like to see the system change who pays our wages. Obviously, it should be our employers, but until that can happen we still have to rely on the generosity of our customers.”
What do you think about this issue?