A Texas bartender turned to TikTok to share a video showing her $9.28 paycheck for more than 70 hours of work to raise awareness of the importance of tipping servers. Aaliyah Cortez pointed out her $2.13 hourly wage in the now-viral video saying, “So this is why you should always tip your bartenders and servers, anyone who waits on you or provides a service for you.” According to the U.S. Department of Labor, in many states, service industry employers are allowed to pay employees a minimum wage of $2.13 an hour under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act, as long as their cash tips add up to the federal hourly minimum wage of $7.25. Cortez said, “As you can see by my check, I cannot afford to live off of $2.13 an hour, so I solely rely on the generosity of my customers."
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