Gratuity

[wm49rs]

I have to ask....let's say you and your significant other go to a restaurant. you order appetizers, entree, dessert and the waiter/waitress has been very attentive in refilling your drinks/water and getting you more bread and relaying any other information you need to the kitchen staff. The bill comes out to exactly $100. You were happy with every aspect of your dining experience. What do you tip?

Trick question, right? Because after dropping $100 on the meal, the thought of paying a gratuity on top of that would be too much to bear. I myself would just down the rest of my wine (no glass, mind you, straight from the bottle), and depart as quickly as possible after signing the check. Akin to ripping the band-aid off quickly: get the pain over with fast.....

 

[psukardi]

I have to ask....let's say you and your significant other go to a restaurant. you order appetizers, entree, dessert and the waiter/waitress has been very attentive in refilling your drinks/water and getting you more bread and relaying any other information you need to the kitchen staff. The bill comes out to exactly $100. You were happy with every aspect of your dining experience. What do you tip?

IF, they did all of these things you said then they get $20. IF they simply just brought me a menu, asked what I wanted, didn't check on me, had to flag them down to get a re-fill, waited forever to take my check or bring the desert menu and overall didn't seem to care then they get far less.

 

[xdan0920]

IF, they did all of these things you said then they get $20. IF they simply just brought me a menu, asked what I wanted, didn't check on me, had to flag them down to get a re-fill, waited forever to take my check or bring the desert menu and overall didn't seem to care then they get far less.

You are all over the place.

 

[psukardi]

Oh, I also tip like that because it's not my belief but because I'm not going to look like a cheap SOB in front of the significant other.

Doing something and agreeing with it are two different things.

 

[Weather_Lady]

Oh, I also tip like that because it's not my belief but because I'm not going to look like a cheap SOB in front of the significant other.

Doing something and agreeing with it are two different things.

...Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand, SCENE!!!

 

[luv]

Oh, I also tip like that because it's not my belief but because I'm not going to look like a cheap SOB in front of the significant other.

Doing something and agreeing with it are two different things.

Either have the courage of your convictions or live without conviction. If you're a cheap SOB, be one! But be one with gusto.

Tipping is a choice.

Tip or don't tip. It's up to you to do as you please. If tipping (even begrudgingly) is your choice, just do it. Accept the responsibility for your actions and don't whine about how your partner or society or the rest of the world is to blame for your unhappiness.

Yeesh. Better to be a cheap SOB than a whiner, KWIM?

 

[fredtom]

Shame Disney can't just adjust the price of their menus and pay their people a living wage instead of having the burden on the consumer to subsidize the income of someone that simply brings food to my table.

And this differs how with any other full service restaurant in the U.S.?
WDW didn't invent the customary system we follow here.



"An Adventurer's life is best!"

 

[PhilharMagician]

Except...

At many buffets, the wait staff are also the bus staff. Therefore increasing their workload.

While also working more table. I did not say they do not work hard, but they can make more in tips than in an ala carte restaurant specifically @ WDW where the buffets are quite pricey.

 

[PhilharMagician]

If they are paid minimum wage it's because the market dictates that the value of their service is minimum wage. There is a reason a waitress makes minimum wage vs the accountant whom makes $35 an hour. Because it's not easy to be an accountant.

To assume their job is easy is based on cold hard facts. If they had a specialized skill set, the market force would change accordingly and they'd get paid more. But it doesn't because it's not a skill set.

And worst of all is the social norm where the tipping range keeps sliding. There was a time where a tip was for going above and beyond. Then it was "You have to tip 15%..." then it was "You have to tip 20%" Next thing you know you'll be tipping 25% for someone to refill your water, hand you a menu, and bring you your food. All of which are their job requirements.

You don't tip the person at McDonalds because that's their job requirements and they haven't gone above and beyond.

Yes, but the fact is that the waiter/waitress is most likely making more that $100 per hour in a Disney restaurant. I know with my family of 3 it is approximately $20.00 in tips per TS meal which is anywhere from 45 minutes to 1 hour 15 min and that waiter/waitress is covering 6 - 10 tables depending on the restaurant. The accountant does not even come close.

 

[Cindy'sBruno]

We tip according to the service rendered. I have sometimes given a tip for almost half the bill while others got a penny with a note saying next time be more polite

 

[MichWolv]

If they are paid minimum wage it's because the market dictates that the value of their service is minimum wage. There is a reason a waitress makes minimum wage vs the accountant whom makes $35 an hour. Because it's not easy to be an accountant.

To assume their job is easy is based on cold hard facts. If they had a specialized skill set, the market force would change accordingly and they'd get paid more. But it doesn't because it's not a skill set.

And worst of all is the social norm where the tipping range keeps sliding. There was a time where a tip was for going above and beyond. Then it was "You have to tip 15%..." then it was "You have to tip 20%" Next thing you know you'll be tipping 25% for someone to refill your water, hand you a menu, and bring you your food. All of which are their job requirements.

You don't tip the person at McDonalds because that's their job requirements and they haven't gone above and beyond.

I agree with much of what you say, but some of your analysis is mistaken, so it's that that I will respond to.

Whatever waitstaff is paid, they are paid that little in part because of the economics of the restaurant industry. That industry, for reasons that baffle me, developed such that it is expected that the price charged by the business is for the product (food) and a portion, but not all, of the service. This is contrast to just about any other industry, in which the purchase price of a product includes the service provided by those who sell you the product.

Whatever the reasons, it is absolutely the case that waitstaff are paid by the business far less than market value, because the restaurant industry has developed in a way that the customer directly pays the waitstaff for part of the value of their services. So you are correct that you tip a waitress for performing her job, but that is because of the peculiar way that the restaurant industry works. You are incorrect that the market dictates that the value of the waitstaff's service is minimum wage. The market has instead dictated that a business need not compensate waitstaff for the full value of their service, as the customer will directly pay the waitstaff as well.

This is not the case uniformly around the world. Indeed, one of the reasons that European waiters and waitresses tend to like Americans is that we "overtip" in comparison to their norms.

 

[RonAnnArbor]

There is a big misconception that servers are paid minimum wage. Granted I do not know about WDW's servers, but almost nationwide, Servers are EXEMPT from the minimum wage requirement. Most restaurants pay a couple dollars an hour, and the expectation is that the tips will actually comprise your salary. Here in Michigan, most restaurants pay about 2.35 and hour. Salary is almost entirely comprised of tips. Its the way the US system works.
That being said, in most parts of Europe, tip is included in the price of the meal. IT IS STILL customary to leave a Euro or two above and beyond that already included.

 

[B Shull]

How-w-w-DEE-E-E-E!!!!!
Hold on there. I just came in from cutting the grass and this has gotten way off track.
My question about the tip is because I am fine with it if it is added on automatically but I have a party of 4 so it is not auto. The dining brochure shows a sample receipt with $0.00 on it. I under stand this is the format for your receipts not to show prices only the amount is services used and the amount left. My thing is what to base a tip on if the receipt has no prices on it. In the years past there was a total price of the purchase,tax and tip.
My question is do you get a receipt with a total dollar amount on it to base your tip on or do they do it for you with a party of 4 ????? Is the receipt with all the 0s on it just the one you leave with or what ????
I am just a plain old country boy and just want to know what is the best thing to do about Gratuity.

 

[CTennant]

I usually tip what I feel is fair compensation for the service I've gotten. I don't necessarily look at the total price of the bill and make a determination only on that. If service is exemplary I don't mind tipping 20%+, if not then I don't tip as much. I don't really see why anyone has an issue with tipping waitstaff, and besides that no one forces you to tip. On the older DDP gratuity was already included so you had no way to really tip based solely on service. At least now you are able to control what you give....which sounds like some may not be giving much. That's sad considering how hard a lot of the waitstaff work in the restaurant industry. Don't believe me? Try it for a couple weeks during the busy season =)

 

[HouCuseChickie]

How-w-w-DEE-E-E-E!!!!!
Hold on there. I just came in from cutting the grass and this has gotten way off track.
My question about the tip is because I am fine with it if it is added on automatically but I have a party of 4 so it is not auto. The dining brochure shows a sample receipt with $0.00 on it. I under stand this is the format for your receipts not to show prices only the amount is services used and the amount left. My thing is what to base a tip on if the receipt has no prices on it. In the years past there was a total price of the purchase,tax and tip.
My question is do you get a receipt with a total dollar amount on it to base your tip on or do they do it for you with a party of 4 ????? Is the receipt with all the 0s on it just the one you leave with or what ????
I am just a plain old country boy and just want to know what is the best thing to do about Gratuity.

When we went last summer (and we were a party of 4) and the bill listed suggested tip amounts based on the total of your tab vs. being a larger party where it automatically tacks on the % to your total. For a party of your size you could copy one of those amounts or you could write in whatever you wanted for a different %.

 

[Mukta]

How-w-w-DEE-E-E-E!!!!!
Hold on there. I just came in from cutting the grass and this has gotten way off track.
My question about the tip is because I am fine with it if it is added on automatically but I have a party of 4 so it is not auto. The dining brochure shows a sample receipt with $0.00 on it. I under stand this is the format for your receipts not to show prices only the amount is services used and the amount left. My thing is what to base a tip on if the receipt has no prices on it. In the years past there was a total price of the purchase,tax and tip.
My question is do you get a receipt with a total dollar amount on it to base your tip on or do they do it for you with a party of 4 ????? Is the receipt with all the 0s on it just the one you leave with or what ????
I am just a plain old country boy and just want to know what is the best thing to do about Gratuity.

They will bring you a receipt with the dollar total for the amount you would have been charged if you didn't have a dining plan. It will also give you the dollar amounts for 18% and 20% so that you don't have to do math.
You can pay that gratuity with cash, credit card or simply give them your key to the world card and have the gratuity charged to your room.

 

[flynnibus]

There is a big misconception that servers are paid minimum wage. Granted I do not know about WDW's servers, but almost nationwide, Servers are EXEMPT from the minimum wage requirement. Most restaurants pay a couple dollars an hour, and the expectation is that the tips will actually comprise your salary. Here in Michigan, most restaurants pay about 2.35 and hour. Salary is almost entirely comprised of tips. Its the way the US system works.

Only partially correct - they are not exempt from minimum wage. The employer is REQUIRED to ensure they make at least minimum wage. But many states allow a tip credit, so they don't have to pay the full minimum wage outright in most states but a lower rate (the common 2.35 rate). But if the server's tips do not cover the credit, the employer MUST pay them the gap to the state's minimum wage.

Now in FL, there is no tip credit, and wait staff get paid full minimum wage outright.

 

[rufio]

How-w-w-DEE-E-E-E!!!!!
Hold on there. I just came in from cutting the grass and this has gotten way off track.
My question about the tip is because I am fine with it if it is added on automatically but I have a party of 4 so it is not auto. The dining brochure shows a sample receipt with $0.00 on it. I under stand this is the format for your receipts not to show prices only the amount is services used and the amount left. My thing is what to base a tip on if the receipt has no prices on it. In the years past there was a total price of the purchase,tax and tip.
My question is do you get a receipt with a total dollar amount on it to base your tip on or do they do it for you with a party of 4 ????? Is the receipt with all the 0s on it just the one you leave with or what ????
I am just a plain old country boy and just want to know what is the best thing to do about Gratuity.

When I was there in March, the receipts showed the prices.

 

[englanddg]

When I was there in March, the receipts showed the prices.

The initial receipt you are given by your server has all the prices on it. After they charge it to your room card, that one has prices removed, except for items you paid extra for.

I keep track of them to do a Cost/Benefit on my Dining Plan, so I'm constantly snapping pictures of my meal receipts when I'm there.

 

[unkadug]

I have to ask....let's say you and your significant other go to a restaurant. you order appetizers, entree, dessert and the waiter/waitress has been very attentive in refilling your drinks/water and getting you more bread and relaying any other information you need to the kitchen staff. The bill comes out to exactly $100. You were happy with every aspect of your dining experience. What do you tip?

$20.00 - 25.00