Do you know how many times the people of America have fought to raise the minimum wage and won? It’s been over 20 times, and it is high time they brought home a victory for the tipped workers who have been severely left in the dust. Saru Jayaraman proves that people have been eagerly fighting for this since the end of the 19th century in her article “Why Tipping Is Wrong” by mentioning the rise of an anti-tipping movement. Pay is abysmally low, and going into the hospitality industry and becoming a tipped worker introduces danger into said employees lives yet rarely provides enough funds to cover even the most basic of their necessities. The states should raise the minimum wage for tipped workers to ensure they’re able to survive and care for…show more content… Unfortunately, some take it further than snide comments and start getting physical. A simple Google search of two words such as “waiter attacked” will bring up a plethora of news lines detailing everything from a waitress being kidnapped for confronting a group of customers performing a dine-and-dash to a waiter being attacked for something as small and nonsensical as seating arrangements. Alongside the risk of physical assault, dealing with customers runs the risk of sexual harassment, or worse, being followed home. There are many videos on TikTok of tipped workers of all genders recounting stories of unsavory comments customers have made about their bodies or instances of customers sexually stimulating themselves in front of them while they’re simply trying to get through their shift. Some workers aren’t even safe from their bosses or coworkers; Hooters workers have reported their bosses will perform appearance checks where they will often times grope or further dehumanize them. Increasing the minimum wage and eliminating servers' need for tips can lower the pressure they feel to put up with such abuse and allow them to feel safer reporting their abuse to the authorities without damaging their
