It’s not a secret that servers are typically underpaid and make most of their money from tips, which means if people don’t tip, the server is losing money on that table. That may sound confusing if you’ve never waited tables, so I’ll try to explain since waiting tables helped put me through college. The federal minimum wage for tipped workers is $2.13 an hour. If you have to Uber to work, you’re starting your shift in the hole.
So when customers don’t tip, it’s even harder to recoup that money lost just getting to work. A table being occupied by non-tippers takes away the opportunity for the server to earn a tip from a different customer who could be seated at that table. Working as a server is a constant numbers game to make sure you leave your shift with enough money to meet your needs for the day.
So when a large party is seated in your section, you’re hoping the gratuity will offset the amount of attention the table will take. But sometimes large parties don’t tip or don’t tip well, and that’s exactly what happened to a TikTok creator who goes by Spotlight Shanell.
Shanell was serving tables one day when a party of 21 sat in her section. After waiting an extended amount of time for the remainder of the party to arrive, they were served their food and paid the bill, which ended up being $351.11. At a standard 18% gratuity, the tip should’ve equaled $63.20, which is clearly printed on the receipt the customer signed, but the tip Shanell received was $10. Out of frustration, she took to TikTok to complain, but what happened next was an act of true community.
Jolly Good Ginger, who has over 4 million followers, shared Shanell’s story to his page and asked his followers to donate $1 each to make up for the small tip Shanell received. His followers really showed up, because in just a few hours the short-changed server was nearly $4,000 richer.
Watch her reaction below, but be warned there’s some…colorful language.
@jolly_good_ginger I LOVE IT!!!!