Employees who won’t be able to make a living will go elsewhere. it’s not easy and instant, but eventually if a restaraunt can’t staff itself, it will collapse.

Then why not skip the step of customers choosing to tip at all? Why wouldn’t wait staff just protest/quit to get better wages? Wait staff collective bargaining is > than consumers collective bargaining simply because it’s a smaller population that’s easier to get together under a shared premise. The reality is that nearly every waiter/waitress I’ve talked to about it PREFER the current tip structure. They make more money.

Years ago when I first started out working, I also preferred it. I could walk home with a pocket full of cash well above minimum wage if the night was good.