A server sparked furious outrage after she revealed she was forced to pay a customer’s bill after they dined and dashed because their card was declined.
Audrey, 22, from Dallas, explained that the burden of the check fell on her when the table she was waiting on couldn’t cover the amount and left the restaurant.
The server caused a massive debate between social media users to ensue, just two months after another woman brought tipping etiquette to the forefront of the conversation.
In a viral video, which has amassed over 721,000 views, she begged customers to avoid dining out, before adding, ‘don’t order s*** you can’t afford.’
While many TikTok viewers felt bad for the waitress and pushed her to sue the establishment she works for, others slammed Audrey for not knowing the labor laws and handling the check without question.
Audrey , 22, from Dallas, revealed she had to pay a customer’s bill when their card was declined and they dined and dashed
In a viral video, which has amassed over 721,000 views, she begged customers to avoid dining out, before adding, ‘don’t order s*** you can’t afford’
Meanwhile, other servers came to Audrey’s defense, noting that they too have been left with other choice but to hand over their wallet in these instances, leaving social media users in a frenzy over how establishments should handle pesky dine and dashers.
‘A big [f***] you to the people who walked $300 worth of food and alcohol and the card declined and I had to pay part of their bill since I was your server.
‘Not only did I lose a $55 tip I lost $70 of my own money because of y’all.’
‘Treat your servers better and don’t order s*** you can’t afford,’ she captioned the viral video.
The clip quickly garnered popularity amongst TikTok viewers as many of them pushed the 22-year-old to file a lawsuit, prompting some users on the video-sharing platform to claim she wasn’t ‘too bright’ for paying.
However, many fellow servers took to the comments to reveal they had also been forced to pick up the check when a customer had dined and dashed.
In a follow-up video, the 22-year-old explained that she had just moved to a new state and didn’t know the labor laws.
She added that she liked her job, co-workers and doesn’t have the luxury of quitting her job because of this incident.
‘I cannot afford to just quit my job and not have another one lined up.
‘I literally cannot afford to do that right now,’ she explained.
In a follow-up video, the 22-year-old explained that she had just moved to a new state and didn’t know the labor laws
Audrey assured her followers that she planned to discuss the shocking occurrence with her manager.
Many social media users came to Audrey’s defense and claimed that forcing servers to pay a customer’s bill is against the law.
According to Slate, the situation isn’t as clear cut as it seems.
Luke O’Neill wrote: ‘On a federal level, this type of wage deduction isn’t roundly prohibited by the Fair Labor Standards Act, the law that establishes minimum-wage and other employment standards.
‘The FLSA generally prevents employers from taking servers’ tips, and it prohibits wage deductions for walkouts when an employer claims the maximum tip credit or when such deductions bring a worker’s net earnings below minimum wage.’
This means that if an employer is paying below the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour, reductions are only illegal if they bring a worker’s hourly wage below $7.25.
Social media users, still outraged by the occurrence, offered their support and advice to the 22-year-old
However, many states have laws in effect to prevent employers from deducing a server’s wage due to a customer’s refusal to pay.
These states include Massachusetts, New York, and California.
Social media users, still outraged by the occurrence, offered their support and advice to the 22-year-old.
One user said: ‘Omg I’m so sorry. This should be illegal. It wasn’t your fault.’
Another added: ‘Depending on the state you live in you can sue the restaurant for that.’
‘You got this girl! You’ve got the best mindset. Be nice but firm,’ commented one user.
Other servers took to the comments section to let her know she wasn’t alone in her experience.
‘This has happened to me they will do it again please look out for yourself,’ commented one user.
Another person wrote: ‘Same thing happened to a server at a place I bussed at. $250 or something and they walked, the owner tried to get him to pay and he walked.’
‘This just happened to me last night. $280 tab…. Then she came back, tried to order more I said no she called me lazy and I went in on her,’ commented one user.
***
Read more at DailyMail.co.uk