The issue of tipping servers in restaurants is a hotly debated topic, but regardless of personal opinions, it is a customary practice in the US.
While it is unfortunate that some employers underpay their staff and put the burden of compensation on customers, many servers depend on tips as their primary source of income. However, a recent incident at the Oven & Tap in Arkansas has highlighted the complexities of the practice.
(Instagram/@rebeccasoto_legacy)
Ryan Brandt, a waitress at the restaurant, received a generous $4,400 tip from a table of business executives, which she was later told to hand over to her shift manager to split with another employee. This left her devastated as she had never been asked to hand in her tips before and had worked at the restaurant for over three years. To add insult to injury, she was fired shortly after for accepting the money.
(Instagram/@rebeccasoto_legacy)
The incident gained attention after one of the executives at the table, Rebecca Soto, posted a heartwarming video on Instagram showing the moment Brandt received the thick wad of cash. Soto expressed her gratitude for being able to bless someone else with such generosity and wished for the tip to impact their lives for the better.
(Instagram/@rebeccasoto_legacy)
When Grant Wise, the host of the evening, heard about what had happened, he asked for the money back from the restaurant and handed it over to Brandt and her colleague outside the establishment. Despite this, Brandt was still fired for accepting the tip.
Wise and his colleagues started a GoFundMe page for Brandt, which raised over $8,700 in just a few days. The restaurant, Oven & Tap, issued a statement saying that they had honored the request of the guests to give their gratuity to the two servers and that they do not discuss the details surrounding the termination of an employee.