A viral video shared on social media shows the moment a bar manager allegedly refused to let a group of customers leave until they tipped their server.
Now, anybody who has ever worked as a server can attest to just how far tips can go to bolstering a paycheck.
A"standard" tip is now said to be 20%. Credit: Nikola Stojadinovic / Getty
Jobs in the hospitality industry are notorious for being a lot of work for not a lot of pay, so tips from generous customers really are appreciated. In fact, Qantas now informs travelers that the "standard" tip in the United States is now 20%.
In the US, tips may legally be voluntary... but anybody who has ever tried to sneak out of a restaurant without tipping will probably tell you that they stepped one foot in the parking lot before being tracked down by one of the employees.
Now, one video on social media has left people seriously divided.
Shared by TikToker Gladys Nicole (@gladys_nicole), she claims to have recorded the moment that a bar manager refused to let a group of young men leave until they had tipped their waitress.
In the video's caption, Nicole writes: "A group of men not tipping the [waitress] after HOURS of beer and pool table time. Restaurant manager MADE SURE she was paid!"
She then writes in an overlay on the video: "Dude this manager TRACKED DOWN this group of guys that tipped the waitress $0. He DID NOT let them leave [without] tipping haha".
In the clip, a manager can be seen gesturing to a POS system, as he says: "In English it’s tipping in Espanol and Spanish it’s…so let’s say you get cerveza you pay for pool.
"Don’t forget her, you gotta give her a little bit. Comprende?"
One of the men then appears to point at the server in question, as the manager tells him: "Si, for her. But that right now is zero. [...] You gotta give her, you gotta give her some money man.|
The video has been viewed a whopping 2.2 million times.
Another text overlay from Nicole reveals toward the end of the video: "He caught them before they left They had the pool table with drinks for HOURS and did not tip the waitress [Bad*ss]] manager.”.
While the video appeared to certainly be praising the manager's actions, not everybody in the comments section agreed.
One person wrote: "Oh you mean the money HE and HIS COMPANY should be paying her?? Tipping culture is ridiculous. Properly pay waiters and waitresses already."
A second added: "Tipping is not mandatory!! The way people come after you is ridiculous!!!!"
"I would’ve left nothing after that, and explained how the owner should pay their salary not the customer," typed a third.
The video sparked a huge debate over tipping. Credit: Grace Cary / Getty
The story even made its way to the "EndTipping" Reddit page, where more angry comments continued.
"Whole thing is backwards. The customers should've berated the manager until the worker was paid enough they didn't need a tip," one person replied.
And another commented: " He's demanding money that is not owed, and he's doing it in a threatening manner. That's robbery. They weren't skipping on the check, so he hadn't a legal leg to stand on."
So, what are your thoughts on tipping culture? Let us know in the comments section.