Thread: tips that fall on the floor

I dance in a restaurant about twice a month and people are pretty good about tipping. It's mostly an American crowd, and it's early in the evening, so I don't make crazy huge tips, but many of the bills end up falling onto the floor as I dance. I guess my costumes are not tight enough so that they stay in, or I am shimmying too much! ha. One thing is that I am tall and I usually wear shoes, so when someone is seated they can't reach my bra. So they put the tip in my belt or sometimes my gauntlet. I never wear costumes with the criss-cross straps across my belly b/c they don't suit me. It never fails that an audience member says, "Ma'am, you dropped your money." But I just smile and say "thanks, I'll get it later" b/c I know we are not supposed to reach down and pick our tips off the floor.

When I first started working there, a staff person would come up to me after I was done and give me the lost tips... but the last few times this hasn't happened, even though I know there were tips that fell on the floor and subsequently disappeared while I was changing back into my street clothes. There are a few new waiters, and I think one of them might be pocketing the extra bills. Or a customer pocketed them. The last 2 nights I danced there they were so busy I didn't want to make a fuss, so I didn't bring it up and just left.

My questions are, do you have any tips for securing body tips? And how hard do you work to get your fallen/lost tips? I don't want to make a fuss over 2 dollars, but I don't want wait staff taking my money either.

Oh, I'm glad you asked this! It happened to me for the first time earlier this summer. The best I could think of was to say to the manager or the bartender (who often gets our pay out of the register) "Do you know which waiter picked up my tips? I'm still waiting for them." then sit patiently at the bar and wait for the manager to take care of it.

Of course, I didn't even think of THAT idea til I was on my way home without my tips. ..c::

Hope some good ideas come up here!

When someone says: "ma'am, you dropped your tips", it's ok to say sweetly : oh, could you get it for me? They are usually eager to pick up your money and hand it to you.

One way to make sure that you get your tips, is that ask one of the waiters/waitresses, and when they hand it to you, tip them a couple of dollars (or more, depending on how much you got). That way, they'll probably get it without asking.

Yes, if someone tells you that you dropped money, I will kick it over to them or ask them to pick it up. That way you don't have to pick it up yourself.

Ya know some places it is illeagl to tuch the dancer including to tip in the costume, so in these areas the tips are "showered" over the dancers or just onto the floor. I ALWAYS have a person go to resturaunt gigs with me and they pick up the tips right when I step off the floor.
For states that do allow costume tipping I always advise the tips go into the outside of my hip belt. If to much gets in there I stuff it into the belt between layers. I guess that only works with layered Turkish costumes. Hmm. Maybee try to wear a belly chain?

Tipping tips~ Use tight fabric arm bands. Have the customers slide the tips into that. Or wear underwear with a one inch wide band underneath the costume. If the customer hands you the tip, slide it underneath the band. If they do it themselves feel free to adjust for security.

If there is theft going on, perhaps shimmy down to the floor, scoop up that tip, hand it to a customer and ask for assistance tucking it into the arm band. Definitely mention at the next staff meeting or directly to the manager dance tips go to the dancer.

Originally Posted by Marianna

One way to make sure that you get your tips, is that ask one of the waiters/waitresses, and when they hand it to you, tip them a couple of dollars (or more, depending on how much you got). That way, they'll probably get it without asking.

That's probably not going to help if the waiter/waitress is pocketing them, which is the situation we're experiencing, if I'm reading the OP correctly.

Once I get a tip and don't think it is secure, I try to tuck into my belt/skirt while I am dancing. I think it is a nice idea to tip the staff that picks it up for you. Or if there are any kids in the restaurant they are always eager to help with that kind of stuff. Good luck!

Ask one of the waitstaff to get them for you, but don't go off and get changed until you have them in your hand - just wait off to the side as they pick them up and get changed AFTER you have them!

I stuff the money down safely into my belt or underwear that it won't fall out. I worked in a place that my floor tips always disappeared. I didn't work there long. It doesn't matter if it's 2 dollars or 200 dollars, it doesn't belong to them and it's wrong. I have asked people to please pick it up for me and they have done it, happily, I then stuffed it into my costume. I have even moved money from spots that didn't feel secure and stuffed in where I felt it wouldn't fall out.

hmm if i dont get the tips from the floor, then i guess i dont get them. i do not allow people to touch me while i'm dancing. i absolutely wont let anyone shove money in my bra and i dislike it being shoved into the belt, although i let it happen one time :(
i just have a person come with me to pick up any tips...or i make arrangements beforehand with management to see that someone on the staff picks up the tips.

Thanks everyone for these ideas!

How awkward would it be to say to management, before you dance 'The last couple of times I danced, the tips that were on the floor disappeared while I was changing. Can you make sure I get those tonight?"

Since it happened more than once, it probably wasn't a customer. If I were management, I'd want to know if one of my employees was stealing from the dancer(s). This way you could alert them without directly accusing anyone.

If it's the staff's responsibiity to pick them up and get them to you, then it's management's responsibility to supervise that, not yours.

As far as bringing someone -- I don't make enough to hire an assistant, and my friends/family got tired of being dragged to my gigs years ago, I don't know who I'd bring.

Originally Posted by Lauren_

As far as bringing someone -- I don't make enough to hire an assistant, and my friends/family got tired of being dragged to my gigs years ago, I don't know who I'd bring.

No kidding! I have a hard enough time finding babysitters willing to cover a late night gig!

Once it's happened: I agree in letting the manager know that some tips that had fallen to the floor and were then picked up by *someone* after the show did not make it to me. The manager should know if an employee is pocketing any cash that doesn't belong to them...if they will do it to you, they certainly might steal from customers or the restaurant just as quickly. If it's a guest, the manager should know as well - even if they don't catch them the first time, management/staff should know to keep an eye in the future = happy, paid dancers.
To avoid it in the future: I sometimes make a game of getting someone up from the crowd to help me get my dropped tips off the floor...the game becomes leading them around the restaurant picking up the already fallen dollars, but also *oops!* dropping a few extra while they aren't looking...the job becomes never-ending and hilarious for everyone else...and I get ALL my money from one person, in one wad, usually in my waistband, right before I exit the floor. This doesn't work all the time, but with the right crowd it's pretty entertaining.

When I danced regularly, I used to tuck the money into my a-hem undies while I danced. You couldn't tell that is what I was doing, I'd just kinda shove the money into my belt which then the money would go down to my undies....ewwww....think of all the dollars that have landed in ah-hem undies! LOL

I used to dance at this biker festival each year. I danced in the restaurant that was there in the middle of it all and I'd make over $500 a night. Between each intermission, I'd have to unload my undies so I'd be ready for the next set. Ahhhh...those were the days....lol

HAHAHA....that made me sound like a stripper. HA!!!!!! I belly danced, clothes never came off. The bikers just loved all of us belly dancers and they'd tip us like crazy. They loved that we were belly dancers and they always said it was the best shows they'd seen. The female bikers were the biggest tippers!

I have always just asked a server (politely and always always always in a respectful way) if they could pick up the fallen tips. usually if you tell them it isn't classy for the dancer to pick them up, they are happy to do so. Might be nice to share a few bucks with them at the end of the night for scooping up your loot.

Shoving tips in undies and sweating on them...that's when I'm happy that our Australian money has a plastic finish!

(Though people really don't tip much here)

Too bad in Canada we have coins for our smallest bills. Those won't sit in underwear nicely and can make for some dangerous money showers! LOL

First of all from my personal experiences unless it is a woman and most in private parties, I dont accept tips in my bra in the front of my belt.
Also most places I work I would ask the bartender, waiter to pick up my tips and I gave them few dollars to help me for this.
Other places already know that they pick up the money from the floor they either put in a basket or hand it to me. I share few dollars with them.

Originally Posted by Khalilah

To avoid it in the future: I sometimes make a game of getting someone up from the crowd to help me get my dropped tips off the floor...the game becomes leading them around the restaurant picking up the already fallen dollars, but also *oops!* dropping a few extra while they aren't looking...the job becomes never-ending and hilarious for everyone else...and I get ALL my money from one person, in one wad, usually in my waistband, right before I exit the floor. This doesn't work all the time, but with the right crowd it's pretty entertaining.

This is genius! Love it ..g.: