Espy, you should applaud.

Kagu, it's how it is here, but most people get around it.

That's majorly sucky.

It can be, but the places I've worked, people are usually really cool about it.

That's good at least

Aye, 'tis. Man where is everyone? I remember when a thread like this would have ten pages in a few hours, tops...

I know...
Where did everyone disappear to?

If you tried pocketing your tips like that anywhere I've lived, you could get in a lot of trouble. It's illegal at a federal level; you HAVE to pay taxes on the tips. >.>;

I know over here there is a tip pot in places, but you aren't taxed on them

We have that here, but I do believe you're supposed to pay taxes on them. I do put them down, because I don't care enough and I like not breaking the law, but it doesn't always happen.

That's true.
I knew of a place here where the management would take a % of the tips meant for the waiting staff for themselves.

If you're not taxed on the dollar value of the tips I would imagine you're being taxed on an estimated average tip value. (I wouldn't be surprised if this is common, it's probably easier on the management...) Tips are income and the IRS is cranky about these things. You're SUPPOSED to track your tips and file the total with your employer.

It... would also be a reason to get cranky about lousy tippers, because you'd be getting taxed for an average tip out of a crummy tip. Someone not tipping at all would be a direct negative to your actual salary.

Edit: And having other people take a portion of your tips... I can understand doing that for splitting the tips with the cook staff, since they don't interact with the customers directly, but management shouldn't need it. :/

Where I work CURRENTLY, we have the filing our tips thing. I used to work somewhere with implied tips. You know what our implied tips were? $100 a month. Do you think I made that much in tips? Hell. No. Almost nobody tips anymore unless it's like a nice place or a diner.

You know what really bugs me? Places that automatically add an 18% gratuity to the check.

That's not a tip anymore. :/ The whole point of a tip is to provide feedback to the wait staff. Being forced to pay it is essentially just a quiet way of raising your menu's prices by 18% without making your food look expensive.

Edit: And on that note... when did recommended tipping amounts change from 15% to 18%, anyway?

I usually tip well when I eat out

I tip well, too, unless the service is bad (which generally means "negligent waiter"; I don't blame the wait staff for things outside of their control, like the behavior of other patrons, or a special order being ever-so-slightly wrong). Then, of course, I don't tip well. That's the point of a tip.

Edit: But I DO still tip. A low tip sends a lot better signal than no tip at all; no tip at all just makes you look like a cheapskate, not someone who was dissatisfied with the service.

I tip well for good service, I tip an average for average service, and I will leave a quarter and a note (a nice one with advice) for bad service. If the person is just having a shite day and I can tell? They get an average tip and a nice note. I've worked so much customer service that I get that.

The best tip I ever gave was $20. She gave me the most exemplary, non-sexualized service I have ever gotten. And did this consistently with every customer she helped. And I dropped a $20 in her hand and told her to keep it.