It’s second nature to most diners but the practice of tipping may be making female servers more vulnerable to sexual harassment.
From rude customers to sexist employers, Eric Nordal got fed up with what he saw in his 15 years working in the restaurant industry and is now an activist.
“I just saw so many people, so many of my friends that were just being abused or let down by their employers or customers. It’s painful to watch,” Nordal said.
Nordal helped launch the Retail Action Network in Victoria last year.
The non-profit helps workers in retail, food service and hospitality however they can.
Their efforts range from legal education, putting pressure on employers or lobbying the government for legislative change.
“We’ve easily had over 100 people come through the door and a lot of them stick around to volunteer,” Nordal said. “They’re coming back because they’re seeing years ago these things happened to them and they wish they could have done something.”
University of Victoria PhD candidate, and former server, Kaitlyn Mateluwicz also joined the Retail Action Network and hopes her research will help.
Mateluwicz said hers is the first in-depth study on sexual harassment in restaurants in Canada.
She found that low wages and a dependence on tips puts female servers in vulnerable situations.
“I heard stories about inappropriate touching, questions about the worker’s sex life, innuendo like, ‘I like the way you bend over,'” Mateluwicz said.
“Women are disproportionately affected by this because 81 per cent of servers and bartenders in B.C. are women.”
While the Retail Action Network helps workers in many industries, there is a focus on restaurants and bars.
In B.C., liquor servers earn $1.25 less than minimum wage, legislation the non-profit is hoping will soon be history.