by KYW's Amy Feldman

The Superior Court of California just assessed an $86 million fine on Starbucks—not because it’s a pretentious multinational chain that charges $4.00 for some flavored water, but because of the way it practiced tip pooling. 

If you are a waiter for the summer or for your career, you want to know: what is tip pooling and is it legal? 

Tip pooling, also known as tip sharing or tipping out, is a practice whereby a waiter is required to share some of his tips with other employees who customarily receive tips, like bartenders.  It is legal under the Fair Labor Standards Act for waiters to be required to do so, within certain parameters. First, when you add the tips you keep plus your salary you must be getting at least the minimum wage.   Management cannot force waiters to share tips with those who don’t customarily receive them, such as dishwashers—or management which was the basis of the Starbuck’s lawsuit in which waiters were forced to pool their tips with shift supervisors. 

So, while you will not be making $86 million from the Starbucks lawsuit, you may at least get to keep a bigger part of your own tips.