KATHY MITCHELL AND MARCY SUGAR | Annie's Mailbox Minimum wage law for servers is different

Dear Annie: This letter is in response to "Enlightened in Virginia," whose daughter is a restaurant server. I was concerned because the woman wrote that her daughter was being paid only $2 an hour. This is illegal. The federal minimum wage is $5.15 an hour. In addition, some states have an even higher minimum wage. That waitress is being cheated. Modesto, Calif.
Dear Modesto: Not exactly. We heard from both ends of the spectrum on this subject. Many suggested U.S. restaurants apply the European system, where the service charge is added directly to the bill and there is no tipping. Read on:
Dear Annie: I am a certified payroll professional in Virginia. The minimum wage for servers is $2.13 per hour. This is because restaurant owners are given a "tip credit." If, however, the tips do not make up the difference between the salary and the $5.15 minimum wage, the restaurant owner is required by law to do so. "Enlightened's" daughter should check her pay stub for a code that would indicate this, such as TA (tip allocation). If she is not making minimum wage even with her tips, she has the right to contact the Department of Labor and file a complaint.
Kannapolis, N.C.: Servers should add their pay and tips together at the end of their shift and divide it by the hours worked. If it doesn't equal minimum wage, the employer must pay the difference. Any employer who expects a person to work for less than minimum wage doesn't deserve to have a business.
Walkerton, Ind.: When my grandmother was a food-service worker back in the 1940s and '50s, she had no salary at all and was expected to live off her tips. The blame should go to greedy restaurateurs who refuse to pay their people a living wage, and then say the workers provided poor service or the customers are bad tippers. I believe most customers would be happy to pay a higher price for their food if they could forgo the need for tipping. Why on earth are restaurants permitted to be the only businesses that pay their people substandard wages?
Pittsburgh: As a former restaurant manager, I know that federal minimum wage for anyone who receives tips is $2.13. If that waitress consistently gets low tips, either the manager is overloading the waitstaff, or she needs to look at the type of service she provides. Good waitresses make good tips. Please do not blame the management. It complies with the law.
Pensacola, Fla.: Tell your readers not to tip on the total tab. The amount of the tax should be deducted before calculating the gratuity. On the other hand, one should tip on the full amount of the check (less tax) before any discount or coupon is deducted by the establishment.
Indianapolis: I empathize with the servers, but it is not my responsibility to subsidize them. If diners must continue increasing the percentage of a tip, doesn't it follow that we will soon be paying double the actual price of the meal? A 10 percent tip will guarantee that you keep up with the cost of inflation. I will continue to tip 10 percent, and I encourage others to do likewise.
Corona, Calif.: I'm a chef who has worked my way up through the ranks. For a waitress not to be making at least minimum wage is a crime. Someday, I will open my own restaurant, and you can rest assured my employees will be paid fairly.
Anywhere: Not only do we pay for the restaurant's food, they want us to pay the salaries of their servers with 20-percent tips. Servers should go on strike until the policy is changed.
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