Latest news with #waitstaff
Washington Post
23-05-2025
- Business
- Washington Post
‘No tax on tips' could backfire amid growing tip fatigue
Let's talk about tipping — again. Because just when you thought navigating who gets what and how much was complicated enough, Congress is about to make it even messier. The Senate's unanimous endorsement of the 'No Tax on Tips Act' — exempting those earning less than $160,000 — could ignite a whole new level of tipping resentment. Will consumers feel like they're subsidizing a government tax break? And what about the workers — wait staff, bartenders, delivery drivers, hair stylists, manicurists — who depend on tips to make ends meet. Will they face more scrutiny, even judgment, of their work? If this tax break makes it into the final federal budget, it could create a costly ripple effect for both the people who leave gratuities and those who pocket them, potentially leaving both sides feeling shortchanged. Here's how I see this playing out. A Bankrate survey last year found that Americans have taken an increasingly negative view of tipping, with roughly 1 in 3 calling it 'out of control.' 'There are so many people we don't tip for providing services,' one reader wrote after my column last summer on whether tipping had gone too far. 'We tip a taxi driver but not an airline pilot? We tip at the counter of a cafe but not a fast food joint? We tip waiters but not nurses? Even in states where the minimum wage has been raised to $12, $15 or $17, we're still tipping. The whole thing is dumb and, frankly, should be outlawed. Pay people an appropriate wage for the job they do, the product they deliver or the service they provide. The consumer should not be involved in the decision of how much an employee takes home.' Suspending taxes on tips will inevitably fuel customer frustration with the practice. 'If we hated 'tipflation' before, imagine what it would be now!' a Facebook user wrote. Many merchants now use cashless payment devices that default to a tip selection ranging from 15 to 25 percent. If you want to leave less, you have to use a custom tip option with the worker staring at you while you do the math. This can be awkward and intimidating for a lot of folks. In the Bankrate survey, 34 percent of Americans said they are especially annoyed by pre-entered tip options on payment screens. This proposed tax incentive will 'expand the use of tipped work — a system rife with discrimination and worker abuse — potentially leading to consumers being asked to tip on virtually every purchase,' according to an Economic Policy Institute report. Tipping transfers some of the responsibility of providing a living wage from the employer to their customers. This has caused resentment among many consumers who liken tipping to subsidizing employers. Some experts say employers might be more inclined to keep base wages low if a significant portion of an employee's income comes in the form of untaxed tips. This could shift a larger share of a worker's compensation onto customers, and create financial instability should tipping habits change. This measure also could undermine efforts to raise the federal minimum wage, which has stood at $7.25 an hour since 2009, the Economic Policy Institute said. 'Not taxing tips could further undercut efforts to raise compensation for rideshare, delivery, and other gig/app-based workers who receive tips,' the nonprofit, nonpartisan think tank said in its report. Tip amounts are generally discretionary, which creates uncertainty for the customer and the service worker. Many consumers already are unsure about the appropriate amount to tip. With a new tax break, some my feel justified in tipping less, which could result in greater fluctuations in workers' earnings. There's a subreddit — r/EndTipping — for people who dislike or want to abolish tipping. It has 35,000 members, who often argue that tipping is an unfair and inconsistent way for workers to earn a living. They frequently call on businesses to pay their employees more instead of relying on customer tips. 'Now that it looks like the government in the US will effectively pass a 'no tax on tips', will this alter how much you tip in full service restaurants, etc?' one user posted recently. Here are some of the responses: Others suggested reducing the amount you tip to account for the tax-free income. Under the proposal, eligible employees would get a federal income tax deduction for cash tips up to $25,000 a year. However, it's important to note that many lower income families may not get a large financial boost from the tax break. 'About 4 percent of families report tips to the IRS, and those who do are disproportionately young, unmarried, and lower-income, according to an analysis of the proposal by the Budget Lab at Yale University. 'This means that many tipped workers do not pay income tax to begin with and would not benefit from a new deduction.' If implemented, the 'no tip on tax' proposal will amplify customer tipping fatigue, fuel frustration over wage subsidization, and further highlight a practice that is unpopular with many Americans.
Daily Mail
21-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Real Housewives star who owns £5.5m castle in Kent is blasted for 'rude and arrogant' comment to waiter in Cannes restaurant
A multi-millionaire reality TV star has been labelled 'rude and arrogant' after she dismissed a waiter in a restaurant in Cannes who tried to serve her pizza. Dr Ann Kaplan Mulholland - who has a reported net worth of £500million - moved to the UK with her husband three years ago to invest in a castle in Kent and has been attending some of the biggest European red carpet events. Last week, the Real Housewives of Toronto star attended the Cannes Film Festival in France with her friends and decided to go out for a meal. The group were sitting down outside in a restaurant when one of the waiters helped the socialite to a slice of pizza. Ann, 64, then looked at the waiter with a blank expression as he placed it down on her plate and said: 'Do I look like I eat carbs?' The member of staff appeared shocked as he removed the pizza from her plate before awkwardly walking away from her. The entrepreneur then turned her back to him and continued speaking to her pals, before later uploading the footage onto her own Instagram account, with the caption: '#SoClose'. Influencer Joey Swoll reposted her clip and said: 'You can tell a lot about someone from how they treat the waitstaff at a restaurant.' He went on to say that Ann was 'arrogant' and said that 'she did not know how to act like an adult at a restaurant'. Joey proceeded to accuse Ann of thinking that she was 'better than people' because of her wealth and status as a TV personality. The bodybuilder said: 'For you to take a video of that man, to post it online, to try to shame and embarrass him, and all for what? Some likes and attention on social media? Seriously?' The video of Ann - which has now been deleted from her Instagram page - racked up more than eight million views on Joey's TikTok and more than 10,000 people commented on the situation. One wrote: 'Someone's father just trying to do his job and feed his family.'' Another penned: 'And SHE posted it on her own social media. She really saw nothing wrong with it,' while a third said: 'How rude is she.' A fourth commented: 'I feel bad for that guy. Please be kind [to] everyone.' However, this is not the first time that Ann has posted videos of her speaking to restaurant staff while dining out. When she was at the The Royal Mansour - a five-star hotel in Casablanca - the multi-millionaire was sat at a table in an eatery when staff came to wash her hands - a Moroccan tradition. As soon as one of the men began pouring the water over Ann's hands, she seemingly pretended to scream in pain, which appeared to confuse the waiters. They giggled, apparently not knowing how to react to Ann, as her friends laughed at her joke before she took one of the towels to wipe her fingers. She captioned the clip, which was posted at the start of May: 'Hand cleaning hack. They even wash your hands for you at the table! Now that's hot! #greatservice #Finedining at #itsfinest at The Royal Mansour - Casablanca new 5-star hotel (and 'yes' the staff had fun taping this)' FEMAIL has contacted Ann Kaplan Mulholland's agent for comment. Ann and her husband Stephen, a former plastic surgeon, have claimed non-dom status in the UK for the past three years, during which they bought a medieval castle and invested a purported £25m to transform it into a luxury wedding venue. Speaking to MailOnline at the start of the month, the CEO of iFinance Canada, attacked 'reckless' Rachel Reeves over the 'astronomical error' of trying to extract more tax from the ultra-wealthy who are domiciled abroad for tax purposes. The couple intend to keep Lympne Castle in Kent, where around 100 people are employed, but plans for future British ventures including a new credit finance business have gone up in smoke along with their tax exemptions. Instead of remaining in Britain and being forced to pay UK tax on their foreign income under a new tax regime, millionaires and billionaires are thought to be fleeing abroad, after Labour pushed ahead with a proposal first tabled by Conservative chancellor Jeremy Hunt. Speaking to MailOnline from her Las Vegas penthouse, Ann said the decision to leave the UK had been motivated 'purely' by the end of the regime alongside changes to inheritance tax (IHT) that would have sapped millions from her children's fortune. She said of the change: 'It doesn't make any sense. It's not that we're not willing to pay taxes: we do pay taxes in the UK, we employ over 100 people. 'We bring clean capital to the UK, we've invested in businesses in the UK, we pay tax in the UK. But it's like they don't really want the wealthy in the UK, which I think is a big error. 'There's an opportunity for 'Reckless' Reeves, as I call her, to try to save this.' Late last year, she mulled over writing to King Charles III seeking permission to create her own nation state in the grounds of the castle, so she could escape the non-dom clampdown. She ditched it when she realised it was an impossible ask. Instead, she and Stephen plan to move to Italy's swanky fashion capital Milan by next year - following in the footsteps of Aston Villa owner Nassef Sawiris, who left London earlier this year. The European country has an attractive non-dom regime where the super-wealthy are charged a flat annual rate of 200,000 EUR (£171,500) plus 25,000 EUR (£21,400) per family member in order to shield their foreign assets. Ann and her husband attracted widespread media attention when they snapped up crumbling Lympne Castle in Kent for a steal at £5.5million in 2023 after the last of their children flew the nest. The price tag was snipped amid concerns over the huge amount of investment needed to bring it up to scratch - a brief on which she was more than able to deliver. She has since invested around £25million in revitalising the castle and opening a restaurant, the Naughty Dog, on site. She says she now employs around 100 people on the site, and has filmed a new reality series currently airing in the US that follows the renovation journey, entitled Queen of the Castle. 'I felt so at home in the UK: I joined the church, joined the community, I play Scrabble with people - we love living here,' Ann continued. Ann started loan firm iFinance in 1996 and sold it in 2022 after growing it into one of the country's biggest lenders. She boasts a doctorate in finance as well as an MBA and other industry qualifications. The businesswoman says she is bothered by the fact that she has to leave the UK to avoid 'demolishing' her businesses - as she has grown fond of her new home. 'I would do anything to stay but not demolish my businesses globally at the same time. I love it here, and I'm part of a community,' Ann said. 'I love my life in England. It's a beautiful country - who wouldn't love it there? 'It was a big decision to move to the UK. We could have gone anywhere but we chose the UK, and we chose to invest in it and make it our home, and part of that choice was because of the non-dom regime. 'But the government is not listening, or are not recognising the impact this is going to have on the economy.'
Washington Post
21-05-2025
- Business
- Washington Post
In D.C.'s new world of eating out, when is a service fee a tip?
In 2022, D.C. voters approved Initiative 82, a ballot measure that makes restaurants take more responsibility for paying their tipped workers instead of having wait staff rely on customers' generosity. But after two years of operating under the new system, in which restaurant workers get a minimum of $10 per hour rather than the old tipped wage of about $5 an hour, there's trouble in the eateries of the capital city. Dining out in the District has become akin to flying on Spirit: The price is rarely the price. When the check comes, it's often so laden with explanations of new service fees — levied by restaurant owners trying to afford the new pay scale — that bills now rival CVS receipts in yardage.
South China Morning Post
11-05-2025
- Entertainment
- South China Morning Post
Study Buddy (Explorer): Buy a cocktail and hit a villain at this bar in Guangzhou, China
Content provided by British Council Read the following text, and answer questions 1-9 below [1] A bar in southern China is trending on social media for providing cocktails and giving customers a chance to indulge in a traditional ritual used to drive away bad luck. The drink – a 'Villain Hitting Cocktail' – is served at the Lotus Lounge bar in Guangzhou, Guangdong province and claims customers can banish bad energy with a slipper in their hand. [2] According to a video clip that attracted 50,000 likes and 130,000 shares on a leading social media platform, after a customer makes an order, a waitperson will bring them a wooden box with a cocktail glass inside and a woman's slipper made of plastic on top. [3] Customers can smack the 'villain' themselves or ask the waiter to do it on their behalf while they watch the process. In one video, a woman filming can be heard telling a waiter, 'Please help me whack those I dislike and whack my troublesome boss.' [4] The waiter is then seen holding a slipper that will be used to beat a piece of green incantation paper. Beforehand, the customers write down the names of 'villains' on the piece of paper. '[I] hit your head so you will never succeed in your life; hit your hand so you cannot pick up money even when the money is in front of you, and hit your foot so you will not have any shoes to wear,' the waiter chants while smacking the paper with the slipper. [5] At the end of the ritual, the waiter uses a lighter to burn the paper to signal that the bad luck is gone. Then the rite is over. The waiter opens the wooden box to present the cocktail inside to the customer. It is not clear how much the 'Villain Hitting Cocktail' is, but the average price for a drink at the bar is around 150 yuan (HK$159) per person, according to a top customer-reviewing website, [6] The 'beating the villain' ritual, or da siu yan in Cantonese, has been popular in Guangdong for centuries. Before the Chinese government cracked down on superstitious activities in the 1960s, helping customers 'beat the villain' was common in Guangdong cities, with stalls usually set up by elderly women under bridges or in alleyways. Today, some temples in Guangzhou are said to be the most effective venues for beating the villain. Visitors pay about 100 yuan for the ritual. [7] The bar's novel service has gained traction online. 'It is so funny. I want to try to repel all the bad people or bad things from me,' one internet user said. Another person saw a business opportunity and said, 'This bar is near my home. I can go there to hit the villain for you.' Source: South China Morning Post, April 23 Questions 1. What is the purpose of the drink according to paragraph 1? 2. What does the 'order' in paragraph 2 refer to? 3. In paragraph 2, the box contains … A. a pair of wooden utensils. B. a cocktail and a menu. C. a drink and footwear. D. footwear and an empty glass. 4. Find a word in paragraph 3 that means 'hit'. 5. According to paragraph 4, the last part of the chant is directed at which part of the 'villain's' body and why? 6. Decide whether the following statements about paragraphs 4 and 5 are True, False or the information is Not Given. Fill in ONE circle only for each. (4 marks) (i) Hitting the hand prevents the 'villain' from becoming wealthy. (ii) The cocktail contains gin and lemon juice. (iii) Customer write their own names on the paper before the ritual. (iv) Burning the paper signifies the removal of bad luck. 7. In paragraph 6, when did the Chinese government ban da siu yan? 8. Who typically ran the 'beat the villain' stalls in the past, according to paragraph 6? 9. What does one internet user, mentioned in paragraph 7, offer to do for others? Customers can 'hit' the villains – names written on green incantation paper – themselves or ask a waitperson to do it. Photo: Douyin Answers 1. to drive away bad luck 2. a 'Villain Hitting Cocktail' 3. C 4. whack 5. The foot, so they never have any shoes to wear. 6. (i) T; (ii) NG; (iii) F; (iv) T 7. in the 1960s 8. elderly women 9. One internet user offered to go to the bar and hit a villain on someone else's behalf.
