this post was submitted on 21 Jul 2024
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This whole system is designed so that the public subsidizes poorly run businesses.
The only way to make it stop is to force such businesses through legislation to pay their employees more, and to do that you have to get past the "but my business will close / but they'll replace us with AI / but the market says..." crowd.
Wasn't there a comic going around about pro-laborer regulations throughout history, like, "giving them two days off each week will kill me," "taking child laborers out of the mines will kill me," "covering up all the giant exposed gears in the facility will kill me," and so on?
Found it - https://leftycartoons.com/2009/09/04/a-brief-history-of-corporate-whining/
And saved. Thank you.
Exactly what I was thinking of, thank you!
Yeah I remember that
In California, restaurants were sneaking in 3% upcharges. They started out as "we're adding 3% to pay the state-mandated health care costs for our employees." It quickly progressed to "we're add 5% to your total bill because fuck you."
California recently mandated that practice illegal and requires all "extra fees" to be reflected in the prices instead.
Multiple restaurants stated (in public... recorded on TV, no less) that they "would lose business if they stopped this practice because then customers would know how much they're paying up front."
I was amazed at their candor. These "entrepreneurs" don't even know how to be embarrassed by their greed anymore.
They'll be replaced with AI anyway if they keep demanding tips like that.
AI will still ask for tips.
400%
Somebody a while back posted pictures of self-checkout kiosks asking for tips.
100%. To be clear, I'm not defending any of those kinds of arguments -- they just make it difficult for these kinds of changes to happen from a practical standpoint.
Companies will replace all workers with AI or other automation regardless of anything happening with wages. It's their only option for the endless growth they claim they need.
That's a weird way to phrase it. Customers are always "subsidizing" businesses by paying for their goods/services. That's how businesses work, whether they're well run or not. What tips do is hide the cost of what you're buying. It was at least possible to calculate it yourself when everyone agreed on the standard 15% and only at places like dine-in restaurants. But that's no longer the case, so how much you're expected to pay is a mystery until you're handed the machine.