Waitresses can sometimes have it rough. Especially if they work at Hooters and dye their hair or have to rescue a dog from a hot car. Most waitresses work below minimum wage and must survive on tips alone. For college students, who are struggling to make ends meet while paying for school, this next story will give you hope!
A waitress at a Thai restaurant in Honolulu, Hawaii, was the recipient of a massive tip recently. According to Mashable.com, Cayla—a waitress who works two serving jobs—received the tip of a lifetime from an Australian couple who were vacationing at the island.
While Cayla was serving the couple, the topic of school came up. She informed them that she had moved to Hawaii to attend school but was forced to drop out because she couldn’t afford it anymore. In case you’re curious, the average tuition costs for state colleges in Hawaii is $4,847 for in-state residents and $14,011 for out-of-state residents.
According to HR.BLR.com®, Hawaii’s minimum wage is $9.25 per hour; the minimum tip wage employers are legally allowed to pay their waitstaff is $8.50 per hour, with a maximum tip credit of 75 cents. Employees must regularly earn at least $20.00 per month in tips; combined wage must be at least $7.00 more than the applicable minimum wage. Needless to say, combining this low wage with the high cost of living would bankrupt most college students who are forced to pay for their education out of their own pocket … and that’s where the Australian couple comes into play.
The Australian couple’s tab came to $205. When Cayla picked up the check, she saw they had left a $400 tip! “I just thought it was so generous of them. I never get tipped that big. I had to say thank you,” Cayla told KHON news. “During dinner, they told me where they were staying, so I ran there after work to see if they’d still be there.” They were, and Cayla thanked them graciously with flowers and a card, but that’s not all!
The next day, the couple returned to the restaurant and surprised Cayla with an offer to pay off her $10,000+ student loan debt and pay for the remainder of her college education so she could go back and complete school. “I was like, ‘No way, you don’t have to do that for me. I just wanted to say thank you,’” Cayla told KHON. “I still don’t feel like it’s real. I want to run around in the streets.” Cayla tried refusing the generous gift, but eventually relented. The couple—who wishes to remain anonymous—told Cayla that the best way to thank them was to “be her best self.” Cayla will be using this generous gift to go back to school to study business and liberal arts.
“They really changed my life and I don’t know how to thank them,” Cayla told Honolulu Civil Beat. “But I will make them proud and do whatever I can to be the best person I can be.” The couple plans to stay in touch with Cayla and attend her graduation in the future.
 Melissa Blazejak is a Senior Web Content Editor at BLR. She has written articles for HR.BLR.com and the HR Daily Advisor websites and is responsible for the day-to-day management of HR.BLR.com and HRLaws.com. She has been at BLR since 2014. She graduated with a BA of Science, specializing in Communication, from Eastern Connecticut State University in 2008. Most recently, she graduated in 2014 with a MS of Educational Technology. |