BEWARE of Chicago Pizza!!!

[ChriswUfGator]

The Chicago Pizza automatic gratuity is not included for the benefit of the customer. To understand the reasons behind the policy, you must first understand the way the company deals with its labor costs.  Chicago Pizza's goal is to have an entire waitstaff of full-time employees for zero cost to the company.  The servers do not leave at the end of their shift with any of the 15% gratuity that the guests are paying. The only money a server will leave with is a cash tip that is left on top of the automatic gratuity, which on some nights, may be no more than 5 - 20 dollars.  At the end of every server's shift, Chicago Pizza collects all of the gratuity and pays the server back with it.  The company tells its employees, along with the labor board and the IRS, that all servers are payed $7.25 an hour. That hourly wage is actually being payed out of the gratuity from the guests.  Chicago Pizza pays nothing for labor.

On top of this clear injustice, every employee pays Chicago Pizza $1.75 an hour as a "service support fee".  This money goes to pay the hourly wages of "bus boys, hosts, and food runners". Anyone who has been to Chicago Pizza may have noticed that there are not bus boys, hosts, or food runners. Every server is expected to perform the jobs of four people. Servers seat tables, wait tables, run their own food, and then bus the tables all by themselves.  So please, before anyone judges the waitstaff, please understand the position they are put in.

The advantage to the servers in this pay scenario is that you are guaranteed 15% of your sales as earnings, and in high volume restaurants like the Jacksonville Landing and Jax Beach locations, this can be beneficial. Overall, most employees are upset about it because they do not leave with their tips at the end of the night, and the tips that are paid in the form of a paycheck are $1.75 per hour short of what they actually earned.  On top of personal financial woes, most employees do feel like the customer is being cheated out of money and good service. 

Yes, Chicago Pizza is a fun establishment. Yes, the food is good. Unfortunately, the business model of this company has mutated into a ploy to exist without labor costs at the expense of the servers and guests.

Quoted for posterity.

This establishment is ripping off its own employees.

[Jerry Moran]

I did work for Jean Fayet in the late '70's.  In a letter he wrote to me in 1990, Fayet accused me of having a kind heart.  To this day I do not know if his intent was to compliment or insult me.

http://www.insatiable-critic.com/Article.aspx?ID=556&keyword=Lafayette%20We%20Are%20Leaving

[coredumped]

Yeah, a little fishy, you probably saw he/she only has 1 post....I'm thinking a saboteur from Al's

[another CP Server]

I can verify everything CPServer says. I too have worked at Chicago Pizza. Their business practices are extremely unethical. This new 15% policy wasn't created as a convenience to anyone. The company has faced several lawsuits regarding labor issues and their approach to payment.

Servers are paid at least minimum wage (7.25 not 4.25) for their hours worked. They walk out every night with their cash tips only. The credit card tips are then rolled into a biweekly paycheck. If the credit card tips exceed 7.25 an hour then the servers see those tips on their paycheck. If those tips fall short of the 7.25/hr then the servers only get minimum wage!

This was Chicago Pizza's system for quite some time until multiple employees have taken them to court and notified the labor board (if you look closely, you'll notice the labor board is in Chicago Pizza EVERY week to talk to Jimmy).

As the lawsuits were being settled, Chicago Pizza has argued that their employees are "commission based employees." I don't know too much about the laws regarding commission only employees, but apparently there is a mandated percentage charged for their services. Additionally, if you look at your bill you will notice the 15% is a service charge as opposed to a gratuity.

Another thing to pay attention to is the sales tax. In Jacksonville sales tax is 7%. In Chicago Pizza they charge you 8%. Do the math. Is this illegal? I'm not entirely sure but it seems unethical to me.

Stephen, to answer your question regarding SSI and income taxes....
Chicago Pizza takes out taxes from your paycheck each pay period. This is cool and all until at the end of the year when they file you as an employee that hasn't been taxed yet. What happens then is all the servers end up owing money as opposed to getting a return. Lawsuits have been filed and won (from what I've heard) over this situation.

Another thing, employees are required to sign up for direct deposit so they rarely see a pay stub reflecting where all their hard earned money has gone. I have seen employees shorted upwards of two hundred dollars on their paychecks! When this happens, servers bring all of their clock out slips to Jimmy and demand reconciliation. Jimmy then apologizes for the computer's error (ha) and writes them a handwritten check for the difference. It appears they try to see what they can get away with from new employees, but all the veteran servers know better and as such keep all of their clock out slips. I know servers who have excel spreadsheets that have every single penny ever earned in that establishment.

No, I am not a saboteur from another establishment. I used to work at Chicago Pizza myself and have since left for the above reasons. I could go on and on about their skewed practices....if anyone is interested?

[another CP Server]

Using the OP's image...

The subtotal was 17.99
Tax at 7% = $1.259, or $1.26
Tax at 8% = $1.439, or $1.44

Look at the image....which is showing?

[another CP Server]

Just curious, is the sales tax issue illegal?

[another CP Server]

I think the legal requirement is just that the restaurant has to pay whatever they collect on behalf of the department of revenue---meaning that if they pay everything the collect, they probably arent going to get much heat from the government for overpaying them .05 percent.

The government definitely does not see that money. Not to pot stir, but there are definitely egregious errors in their accounting. They have paid hefty sums of money and I believe they have much more to pay as time progresses. I guess we can only wait and see. It just pains me to see new employees get rolled into this system.

[coredumped]

OP here...
I think it's time to call Ken. If I was more attentive I would have noticed that 8%, something is certainly up here.
Now I KNOW I won't be going there anymore. Thanks for the info CP servers.

[ChriswUfGator]

Illegal:

1: Collecting 8% in sales tax when the statutory state and local rate is 7%.

2: Keeping any funds ostensibly collected for sales tax.

3: Automatically docking the servers' pay $1.75/hr to the house for bussing and other services that don't exist.

Additionally, the "minimum wage guarantee" isn't any blessing, that's legally required. If a restaurant's volume of business and policies create a situation where their servers would routinely be making less than minimum wage, then they are actually required to make up the difference.

Chicago Pizza isn't doing anything special there, they're only doing what they have to do.

And FWIW, their hinky sales tax calculations are a pretty big deal...the dept of revenue aren't particularly nice folks.

[RockStar]

As I stated before, all of CP ills are because of bad management.

[TooncesTheCat]

I think at the bottom of the customer's check it should read:
"Your payroll contribution is 15%.  Thanks for paying your server's hourly wage for us.  Come again!"

[coredumped]

If anyone gets take out, let us know if they charge that 15% on that too.

[RockStar]

As I stated before, all of CP ills are because of bad management.

Ah.  you must be an employee then?

Are you? Then your opinions carry the same weight.

[tufsu1]

As I stated before, all of CP ills are because of bad management.

Ah.  you must be an employee then?

Are you? Then your opinions carry the same weight.

I'll take RockStar's opinion...my viewpoints have been discounted many times because "I've never operated a business downtown"....well RockStar is doing just that!

[Timkin]

Just out of curiosity, was it ever determined if the gratuity was being tacked on , on takeout?

I just think its a strange business practice , if this is not conveyed upfront to the customer.  Just IMO..not trying to offend anyone here.