Pool tips by percentages on all eligible team members clocked in at the time of the transaction?

[Apt9F]

Hello - 

Am I correct in assuming that if we choose to pool tips by percentages, defining different percentages to our bar backs/food runners vs. our bartenders, that it can only be done by pooling tips for the entire day vs. pooling tips by all eligible team members clocked in at the time of the transaction? 

Currently, we manually have to change payroll weekly to accommodate for our bar backs / food runners. 

Every Monday, I see what hours they worked, then run a report for those hours to see what tips are, allocate their percentage, subtract that percentage from the bartender.  

Example:  

Bartender works from 3pm - 11pm

Bar back works from 5:30pm - 10pm

I run sales for that day from 5:30pm - 10pm and take a percentage away from the bartender to give to my bar back.

So the bar back is only getting paid on the tips that happened while they were there.

I would be great if the option to assign percentages could be on pooled trips per transaction. 

Anyone have a solution that I am not thinking about? 

[TheRealChipA]

Hi there @Apt9F. In the help window for "how it works" next to pool tips by percentages, there is this explanation:

Transaction tips earned in your preferred time frame (24-hour workday or 7-day workweek) are split by percentages among all tip-eligible jobs. Team members with the same job will receive tips based on hours worked.

So, yes, you are mostly correct in your statement, but percentage tip pools also work for weekly pools, too, not just daily pools.  If you want something more targeted, it seems that your only solution (with Square) is to keep doing what you are doing manually.

You might want to head over to the Square App Marketplace and see if there is a third-party tip solution that would work for you, however.  Also, if you want to, you can submit a feature request to the Staff & Payroll team here.

[svanbrunt · Accepted solution]

Hey @Apt9F 

You are correct that right now pooling tips by percentage, with different percentages by job, only works with the "by workday" or "by workweek" options. We are evaluating potentially expanding the pooling by percentage to also work for each transaction, but no immediate plans on that.

Can you share more on how you would want this to work?

1. On a given transaction, are you splitting the tip based on percentages? E.g. the bartender keeps 60% of the tip and the food runner gets 40%? 

2.  And in the case where only a bartender was working, they would keep 100%

3. Do you have any other requirements how you calculate tips?

* Are multiple bartenders or food runners working at the same time?

* Are there different sections of the restaurant or bar? Or is it 1 big tip pool for the whole location?

Thanks!

Scott

Square Product

[Apt9F]

HI Scott, 

To answer your questions: 

1. On a given transaction, are you splitting the tip based on percentages? E.g. the bartender keeps 60% of the tip and the food runner gets 40%? 

This is partially correct, we are not going through each transaction - we are doing it based on all transactions that are closed while the bartender AND the busser/food runner are clocked in.

Key point here:  we are doing it by time transaction is closed. 

Example: 

Bartender/Server Alli opens at 4:00pm and closes at 10:00pm.  

Food Runner/Busser Freddie clocks in at 6:00pm and clocks out at 9:00pm

Let's say tips are 80% for Alli and 20% for Freddy

Tips for the entire shift are $300

Closed transactions from 4:00 - 6:00 have $50 in tips

Closed transactions from 6:00 - 9:00 have $200 in tips

Closed transactions from 9:00 - 10:00 have the remaining $50 in tips

Alli's tips would be $50 + $160 + $50 =$260.00 

Freddy's tips would be $40 (20% of the tips that were on closed transactions during while he was on the clock.)

She keeps 100% of the tips that she made when Freddy was not punched in and 80% of the tips when he was punched in. 

(hope this makes sense)

Again, I am doing this manually now.

2.  And in the case where only a bartender was working, they would keep 100%

Correct again.  There are certain shifts/and times within a shift that the bartender is there without a food runner/busser.  In that case, the bartender keeps 100% of the tip.

3. Do you have any other requirements how you calculate tips?

* Are multiple bartenders or food runners working at the same time?

  Multiple bartenders, yes.  Food runners/bussers, no (as a rule, but there are exceptions - larger festivals, street parties, etc.)

* Are there different sections of the restaurant or bar? Or is it 1 big tip pool for the whole location?

 Nope.  We are a super duper small operation so we all help each other.   Generally speaking on busier days, we have one bartender/server  open at 4:00pm and the other one comes in at 5:30.  

That is the reason we use pooling by transaction, so if the opening bartender/server has a few checks before, they get the full tip.  

Thanks so much for taking an interest!  

Nancy