The ideas and needs of tipping culture are absurd; on one hand, it’s crazy that you need to pay someone on top of service, adding on to the bill you have to already pay. On the other hand, it’s insane that workers have to make a living on tips instead of their wages.

    Servers make less than minimum wage as a starting point in Maryland, having to earn a better wage. The Maryland Department of Labor says tipped employees earning more than $30 per month in tips have to earn the state minimum wage rate per hour of $13.25. The U.S. Department of Labor says that employment only has to pay $2.13 an hour as long as tips reach minimum wage. Now, does this seem fair? Of course, there is a chance that you can make good money in tips; however, this is all circumstantial. If you have a rude customer, you won’t make money in tips to benefit the work you put into them. 

     However, this also affects the customer. Not all servers are the best, and some work harder than others. So, if you get a lazy server, then why should you be the one paying them when their service isn’t good at all? In fact, why should you be the person in charge of paying this person in the first place? 

     Another problem with this type of payment is how most of the people working there have to get other jobs to sustain living in the economy we live in now. Or, they are high school or college students trying to make ends meet while they’re at school. I believe these people should be getting the money they deserve – however, I don’t think tipping culture is going to change anytime soon.

      This is why I say that when you go out to eat anywhere, or you’re being served by people who make less than minimum wage, you should be tipping at least 20%, maybe 15% if they weren’t good. Paying this amount helps serve the money they deserve to get, and also help supply those working below them such as bussers (who clean tables after people leave), who only make 20% of the servers tips, taking away more money from servers and less from management.

     Tipping culture does not benefit anyone; sure, servers have the possibility to make above minimum wage in a day, but overall, it’s an unsteady resource. The way to solve this problem is just the employers just paying their employees and not relying on customers to pay more money to give servers their wage. It’s unfair to the supplier and the consumer.