I came across this gem on Pinterest. It may be old, and this argument may have been said so much, but it captures every server’s feeling about tipping.
You don’t believe in tipping? Tell me how stiffing me will change that. Tell me how punishing me for the long wait at the door makes sense. Tell me how ME PAYING FOR YOUR BIRTHDAY DINNER supports your protest.
Talk down to me too, while you’re at it. We both know how that establishes your “superiority” over me. After all, I am only a server. It’s not a real job. I mean it’s not like servers pay bills, buy groceries, and need money to survive in Western society.
If you don’t want to tip, GO TO MCDONALD’S. At least those kids get paid minimum by the hour. We don’t.
Seriously, if you have a problem with the practice of tipping, do your server a favour and just don’t come to a restaurant. If you want change, GO TO THE GOVERNMENT. They’re the ones who can enforce change. Your little protest isn’t going anywhere, just like that server you stiffed because now s/he has to stay longer to (hopefully) break even with another table.
/endrant