Just recently read a great article on the effect of "no tipping" restaurants that are popping up all over the States by some pretty notable restaurateurs.
Take a look at the article yourself and let me know what you think. Personally, I think the best quote is this one:
"The other argument is that a well-trained staff will know exactly how much they are going to make and can just focus on the guests and service. This looks great on paper, but will obviously not work in every environment. Another question would be: Does the staff make a consistently higher living wage/hour because of the service charge? Does the house collect the charge and use it to pay this rate year round? Or is the service charge then redistributed as some sort of bonus? Devil is in the details.I like tipping culture personally. Even with a service charge, I’m probably going to tip on top. What happens when you get bunk service? At the end of the year, does the staff end up doing better or worse financially? One of the nice things about tipping culture is that you can earn a very good living in a blue-collar position. If you are fortunate to work in a busy venue, you hustle and provide good service, you are rewarded for it.”
Seriously. I know bartenders that have bought houses and paid off school while some douchbag was condescendingly telling them that they "can do much better than just being a bartender".
Here's a secret: Some of those bartenders and bottle service girls make more than the people tipping them. ALOT more. Hell, some of them make more money on some weeks than the venue owners themselves. lol.