It would be better to simply mandate that tips cannot be used in determining total compensation. However I am more along the lines of eliminating tips, raising the menu prices to represent the cost of paying the service staff the market wage, and then looking at the whole experience when deciding on coming back.

I never bother with restaurants that have mandatory tips on their checks, its a flat out markup and does not let me decide if the service is good or not. I do think many people suffer tip fatigue as the use of tip jars has become offensive to many, especially in the quick serve food industries.

Most states have laws for tipped employees to make sure they take at least that much home. Some are slightly higher, others a bit lower. Here is a link to the Department of Labor site with more info, if you're curious.

http://www.dol.gov/whd/state/tipped.htm

#Note. The left-most column is the important one.

>Until we can legislate that servers make at least $7.25/hr nationwide, no amount of technology is going to move us in that regard.

Even with generous minimum wages, tip culture has crept into Western Europe pretty rapidly. It's more than just a wage technicality that has to change to overcome or dismantle the established tipping culture.

I really, really like the idea of being able to just get up and walk out of a restaurant or bar without having to deal with money though. That said, so long as tips remain expected you're going to come across as a jerk if you don't leave something and it'll likely be remembered for the next time you visit.

Which states don't enforce that employers have to make up the difference if tips aren't enough to bring a server up to at least minimum wage?

Or just let the market handle it.

If people stop tipping, restaurants would be forced to increase wages, because nobody is going to work for $3/hour.