Restaurant equity charges

[Chew Toy McCoy]

Restaurants Are Now Adding ‘Equity’ Charges to Customers’ Checks to Fight Oppression | Jon Miltimore

“My favorite restaurant added an equity surcharge. What should I do?”

fee.org

Couldn’t they just raise their prices without making such a divisive statement?

 

[thekev]

It seems like a gamble that this will go over better. I'm not sure though. On the back end, this probably doesn't change much in accounting. Small businesses do not have large accounting firms on retainer, so they are likely to keep their books simple.

 

[Chew Toy McCoy]

Personally, I don't like general policies taxing everybody to compensate for poor tippers and then should you also tip on top of their forced tip?

Similarly, I sometimes pick up a pizza to go. If I pay with a card there's a line for a tip. I didn't eat on their premises or have it delivered, so what exactly am I supposed to be tipping for? I generally do tip anyway but am still a little resentful about being asked to. If I paid with cash they wouldn't ask me to tip.

 

[tranceking26]

What fucking idiots, that'll probably backfire.

 

[thekev]

I didn't eat on their premises or have it delivered, so what exactly am I supposed to be tipping for? I generally do tip anyway but am still a little resentful about being asked to. If I paid with cash they wouldn't ask me to tip.

Tipping has expanded in where it's used over however many years. I probably notice it less though, as I stopped visiting restaurants and coffee shops at least a couple years prior to covid.

Also note, article is a bit silly with its hand wringing about fixed vs dynamic views of economics. These always tend to ignore issues of constrained assets, such as home buying.

 

[Alli]

Can we please just pay wait staff living wages and do away with tipping? Let’s pretend we’re a first world country.

 

[Chew Toy McCoy]

Can we please just pay wait staff living wages and do away with tipping? Let’s pretend we’re a first world country.

Agreed, but to be fair a lot of restaurants have tight margins and fail, at least in the beginning. That's why I'm saying just raise prices to compensate for higher wages, not some campaign to shame deadbeat tippers...who may or may not actually exist at that particular restaurant.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Can we please just pay wait staff living wages and do away with tipping? Let’s pretend we’re a first world country.

Exactly.

Agree completely.