this post was submitted on 12 May 2025
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A lot of people wait tables just for temporary income while they're pursing other career paths (such as college, acting, writing, etc.), in which case, making just enough to get by isn't a huge issue, and it can even motivate you to work harder on your actual goal.
Most servers I've met who where doing it full-time actually seemed to genuinely enjoy their job and were very good at it, and rarely complained about not making enough. Sure, they'd get stiffed on tips every now and then just like everyone else, but they had a surprisingly high amount of positive stories about very generous tippers that more than made up for the difference.
But like I said, there's a certain type of personality they all had in common: they were generally above average in attractiveness, loved dressing up, and genuinely enjoyed pleasing people, making smalltalk, etc. People like that seem to do quite well for themselves, and they usually have no problem getting promoted, or finding a job at a more prestigious restaurant (where the tips are usually much better).
All of that can still be true without depending on tips. Those successful servers you mention would be successful in either system.
Not really, because in countries where servers are paid a "living wage" by default, people will generally tip much less (usually in the single digits if anything), and therefore there's no incentive for a anyone to go above and beyond to provide good service, because you get paid more or less the same either way.
Go to Europe sometime and see for yourself. Waiters there are often indifferent at best and sometimes even outright hostile. But there's not much restaurants can do about it because employees are difficult to fire, and the lack of earning potential from tips makes standing around and doing nothing just as profitable as working extra hard.