by Brooke Lorren

Created on: April 11, 2010

To answer the question of whether service employees should receive the US minimum wage or not, first we have to decide on what the purpose of a tip should be.  Should it be to pay the server’s paycheck, or should it be to reward a server for a job well done (and possibly as a bribe for them to do well next time)?  If the intent of a tip is to reward a server for doing a good job, and not to pay the server’s salary, perhaps we should give servers at least the minimum wage (or perhaps more), and let the customer choose to tip (or not to tip) based on the service that is received.

Minimum Wage Assures that All Servers Get a Check

Paying service workers the U.S. minimum wage assures that all employees will get a check, regardless of their performance, or who their customer is.  Under the current payment scheme, servers have taxes deducted from their paycheck based on the tips that the restaurant expects them to receive.  Some of these workers end up with little or no money in their actual paycheck, and are only left with the tips, which they have to share with the busboys, bartenders, and other people that help them.  If the server ends up with poor tippers or is having a bad day and doesn’t perform as well as they should, they could be left with little in the way of tips as well.

A tip is meant to be a reward for a job well done.  Under the current system, diners are expected to leave generous tips even if the server spills their drink on them, spends the evening ignoring their customers, and forgets to bring the check in a timely manner because they are busy talking to friends.  This kind of performance does not deserve a reward; however, they should still receive a fair wage.  Because servers are not fairly compensated by their employers, diners are expected to leave a reward because tips are part of their salaries.  Some people would leave no tip in this extreme circumstance, but this leaves the worker with what amounts to slave wages.

It’s Okay if Food Prices Go Up

One of the arguments that some people have against giving service workers the U.S. minimum wage is that doing so will cause food prices to go up, yet in the same debate, they will tell you that if you can’t afford to leave a good tip, you can’t afford to eat out.  If food service workers were paid a higher salary, yes, food prices would go up.  That’s okay though.  Under the current system,

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