Customer Leaves A Penny Tip After His Waiter Refused To Stop Talking About Politics
While he felt justified, some of his friends believed the action was too harsh, especially considering they were a large group dining on a Sunday.
Monkey Business Images / Shutterstock; CanvaPro A group of friends who went to a restaurant for brunch got more than they bargained for after their waiter decided to project his political beliefs onto them every time he came over to the table.
It became rather bothersome as the group was trying to enjoy their meal, and when the bill came, they decided to show the waiter exactly how they felt about his behavior with the tip they left behind.
After he constantly talked about his politics, the customer and his friends left their waiter a penny as a tip.
We can all agree that there is a time and place for political debates and discussions. A brunch to catch up and unwind with some old friends is most likely not the right time or place.
Unfortunately, one man and a group of his friends were bombarded with talk surrounding politics during their meal when their waiter refused to drop the subject. Sharing his story on Reddit, the man revealed that he and six of his friends went to a restaurant for brunch where they encountered the server who was “not shy about sharing his ultra-right views about immigrants.”
Photo: StockCanarias / Shutterstock
Despite the man and his friends informing the server that they were just trying to enjoy a meal without hearing a political rant, he refused to respect their wishes. “Unfortunately he wouldn’t shut up about undocumented immigrants and the Chinese/Mexicans/etc. every time he came to our table,” the man wrote.
While some of the table found the waiter’s ridiculous remarks amusing, the man believed that it was rude and unprofessional that he continued to talk about politics after he was asked not to.
When the group was given the check at the end of their meal, the man decided to get revenge on the server for his questionable service. “I left a penny and a note suggesting he shouldn’t impose his politics on his customers,” the man wrote.
While he believed that his actions were justified, not everyone in his friend group agreed. “One of my friends thought that was kind of [expletive] especially since we were a large party and the server had to work on Sunday,” he shared. Most people defended the man’s decision, admitting that they would have done the same.
Feeling conflicted after his friends chided his tipping, the man turned to Reddit and the support was overwhelming.
“The number one rule of serving is to do whatever you can to make the table happy. And if that means shutting your mouth, it should've been an easy win,” one Redditor pointed out.
“Honestly if it were me I'd go a step further and call the restaurant to tell his boss that he made me uncomfortable,” another user shared. “I actually think that you overtipped,” a third user admitted.
Other people noted that preaching your political beliefs is not part of a restaurant server’s job, and they should especially not be pushing them upon their customers.
There is a time and place for political debates. Work is likely not one of them.
While at work, employees are bound to have discussions that are not related to their jobs, and their personal lives will likely come up.
Our politics are a part of our personal lives, and according to a survey conducted by the research firm Perceptyx consisting of 3,000 employees, 70% of them admitted to discussing politics at work.
While it is important to educate ourselves and be in the loop on the latest political news, everyone will have their own personal beliefs and views, and sometimes, we can clash with one another. The survey also uncovered that over 40% of those employees had political disagreements with their colleagues.
Bringing up controversial subjects at the workplace is not the wisest idea, and can lead to unproductive arguments, mistreatment from your bosses and colleagues, and even harassment from people who feel especially strongly about the beliefs they feel everyone should share with them.
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It can result in a toxic environment, both for employees and clients who did not even ask to hear about politics.
According to Employer and Consumer Law Group, when politics arise at the workplace, it is in your best interest to disengage from the discussion if you believe things will get heated, and speak to your employer when you believe that the conversation has crossed a line.
The workplace should be kept professional, and the best way to do that is by ensuring that we can agree to disagree when it comes to politics. If someone asks you to refrain from discussing political subjects with them altogether, respect their wishes and save the political rants for another time.
Otherwise, you may miss out on a big tip with no one to blame but yourself.
Megan Quinn is a writer at YourTango who covers entertainment and news, self, love, and relationships.