Originally Posted by ClevelandBronco (Post 7065939)

I'm not in the pizza business, and here's an answer to your question: Yes, an automatic gratuity would have prevented Hootie from proving that he deserves to be fired.

Originally Posted by Bugeater (Post 7065957)

I've already conceded that Hootie shouldn't have taken it upon himself to handle the situation himself. My point is that measures could've been taken to prevent this from happening in the first place, and that's on ownership/management. You don't need to be a restaurant owner to realize that.

Originally Posted by Donger (Post 7065948)

You wrote: "Some of us didn't finish our meals because it tasted like shit."

What is the waitress knew that it tasted like shit, and told you that it was good?

Originally Posted by chiefsnorth (Post 7065945)

Not the restaurant business, but not something totally dissimilar.

I would fire the guy who caused the trouble, offer the company a free meal or a big discount if it were local and workable.

For the employees that night, I'd probably offer them an extra shift the next week or make some other consideration that will help them replace the income. But it's still their job to live with this occasionally in this line of work.

Originally Posted by chiefsnorth (Post 7065945)

Not the restaurant business, but not something totally dissimilar.

I would fire the guy who caused the trouble, offer the company a free meal or a big discount if it were local and workable.

For the employees that night, I'd probably offer them an extra shift the next week or make some other consideration that will help them replace the income. But it's still their job to live with this occasionally in this line of work.

Originally Posted by DJ's left nut (Post 7065931)

Isn't the fail rate on restaruants somewhere in the mid-80s?

As you noted - they're volume businesses with very small profit margins. You take the $500 and subtract actual costs and you're looking at probably $475. Then you consider payroll taxes, etc... and you're looking at what? $400 left over as revenue? That gets you 150 hours of waiter hourly and that waiter hourly gives the server an opportunity to earn an income that far exceeds what he'd be making elsewhere with a similar education.

Or it pays the electric bill that month. Or maybe the renters insurance. Or 1/4 of the mortgage payment.

And I'm supposed to just go 'eh' when some dumbass that doesn't see my monthlys decides to throw a temper tantrum because he excercised poor judgment and screwed his co-workers?

There's just way too much on the line for small business owners, especially restauranteurs, to allow that kind of thing. This isn't firing him for chirping back at a snarky customer (anyone that's worked at a restaurant for long enough has done that); this is taking him to task for using my brand as his badge when dealing with a billion dollar corporation on a vendetta drive that will likely cost me money.

This just doesn't seem close.

Originally Posted by DeezNutz (Post 7065950)

The employees suffered through a sad learning experience, and never again should they not include gratuity on large groups. This is an essential practice and suggests nothing about "tackiness," as Hootie alluded to earlier.

Originally Posted by ClevelandBronco (Post 7065959)

In this situation, here's how I'd act: I'd call a meeting of everyone who was working and I'd offer to make up the shortfall between the 3% they received and the 18% they may have wanted. I'd hand Hootie a check for his share of that amount and anything else I owed him and fire him on the spot in front of everyone else. Then I'd have a brief discussion with the remaining employees about the kind of conduct I expect when they are dealing with my customers.

But it ain't my pizza joint.

Originally Posted by chiefsnorth (Post 7065969)

Good post.

The failure rate of restaurants is probably high because they are started by people with the same attitudes we have seen on display in this thread.

Originally Posted by Bugeater (Post 7065974)

Fair enough, I was just starting to get the impression that some of you thought the employees should simply accept getting screwed over and be happy they have a job at all.

Originally Posted by Metrolike (Post 7065978)

Yeah, seems like you have to be quite a dick and not see your employees as other human beings to be a successful restaurant owner. I couldn't do that. People are people, you should treat them the way you want to be treated.

Originally Posted by chiefsnorth (Post 7065969)

Good post.

The failure rate of restaurants is probably high because they are started by people with the same attitudes we have seen on display in this thread.

Originally Posted by ClevelandBronco (Post 7065959)

In this situation, here's how I'd act: I'd call a meeting of everyone who was working and I'd offer to make up the shortfall between the 3% they received and the 18% they may have wanted. I'd hand Hootie a check for his share of that amount and anything else I owed him and fire him on the spot in front of everyone else. Then I'd have a brief discussion with the remaining employees about the kind of conduct I expect when they are dealing with my customers.

But it ain't my pizza joint.