Friday, March 21, 2008

We KNEW IT! Here's a tip - keep ya money in ya pocket!

According to the Los Angeles Times, coffee giant, Starbucks has been ordered to pay back its baristas (coffee makers/cashiers) a truckload of tip money that was forcefully split with shift supervisors. In other words, when you dropped money in the tip jar, a good deal of it was going to managers and people who didn't serve customers rather than the baristas themselves. Time will tell if this ruling actually results in action, as (of course) Starbucks is appealing the San Diego court's decision. Unlike waiters in traditional restaurants who make less than minimum wage without tips, Starbucks baristas are paid above minimum wage in addition to their tips. Onyx Cranium isn't saying you shouldn't drop your change in the tip jar. But we don't. Sorry, you don't get our 35 cents simply because you handed out the amount that cash register told you to. This realization that the tips often don't end up in the pockets of the lowest paid employees that they were intended for just confirms our decision to save the tips for service that is above and beyond the basics.

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