It is (secretly) the dream of everyone who works in service: one day to receive a big, fat tip that you can use to buy – for example – a nice car. For an American waitress, that dream became reality at the beginning of this month, after a guest left an envelope in the restaurant containing $10,000. A classic feel-good story with only winners, you might say, until it took an unpleasant turn.
The story revolves around Linsey Huff, a young divorced mother who has been working as a waitress in a cafe in the town of Benton Harbor (Michigan). On Monday, February 5 – her work week has just started – she serves a middle-aged man who has just come from a funeral and could use some distraction. He says he is very sad and would like to do something special in memory of his deceased friend. He comes up with the idea of giving Linsey a tip of no less than 10,000 dollars (about 9,249 euros). She cannot keep that money herself: she must divide it among her colleagues, the man says, according to various local news media.
Completely overwhelmed, Linsey walks back into the kitchen and shares the happy news with the other waitresses. They divide the money among themselves and each have about $1,200 left over. One of Huff’s colleagues later tells the local television news station WNDU that everyone on the wait staff is “going through something else in their lives, so that amount helps us all a lot.”
‘I don’t want a problem’
The euphoria and joy that prevails in the café completely changes after a few days. The kitchen employees hear about the issue and feel left out. Angrily, they ask Linsey why they were not taken into consideration. She indicates that she will discuss it with her managers. That conversation comes back like a boomerang in Linsey’s face: the managers do not want negativity after such a nice story, and demand the names of the objectors, the British newspaper The Guardian writes based on Linsey’s lawyer .
Linsey refuses to give names ‘because she doesn’t want to create a bigger problem’. She does hope for support to remove the dissatisfaction among her colleagues. The managers react unrelentingly and immediately dismiss Linsey for refusing to work, her lawyer says. The waitress writes off her sadness on social media. “One week I’m a great, hard-working employee. Now I am without a job for the first time since I was 15.’
‘Good luck, I’m a waitress’
In a statement on Facebook, the owners of the Mason Jar Cafe denied that the tip issue played a role in the firing. “This was a decision that we did not make hastily or lightly,” it said. No specific reason for the dismissal is given. “We really care about our staff,” he continues. “We are doing everything we can not to lose any staff.” According to management, Mason Jar’s team would be super close and would consist of the same people for years.
Linsey states that there is no truth in her former employer’s story. In fact, she felt forced to hire a lawyer because her managers allegedly threatened a civil lawsuit if she did not stop discussing her dismissal on social media, her lawyer told The Guardian. “They told her they would sue her and demand money. She laughed and said, well, good luck, I’m a waitress. There is no estate here or anything.”
According to the lawyer, it should never have gotten to this point. “Because of her own generosity and sharing this tip – at the request of the person who was so generous – she has lost her job.” The Mason Jar Cafe would not comment on the matter. “We cannot comment on the nature of her job loss due to labor law and to protect the staff involved,” the statement said.
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2024-02-20 18:48:00
#Grateful #guest #waitress #tip #troubles
