Workers Reveal What It's Really Like To Work At Waffle House

[@MashedFood]

What do you think of the conditions for working at Waffle House?

[@Ghoulstille]

There's a point where people should realize they're being taken advantage of. Waffle House is one of many who take that advantage. Makes me glad they are nowhere near where I live.

[@caringheart34]

The Waffle House has found its new host.

[@Wizardof]

I'd be fired day one.

[@brandonthetoyandgamecollector]

I worked at a Waffle House near Disney for 4 years as a host, was a pretty tough job, but the staff was friendly and we all treated each other like family, vented to each other, defended each other, helped each other out. That food wasn’t free though, took some money out of my check every week even if I didn’t eat it. But it was only like $15 they would take out I think so a couple days eating the food I’d say it wasn’t a horrible thing. Still drop by that old location from time to time, the staff that remembers me is always happy to see me and sometimes I get a free meal out of it

[@fullbawks8590]

some of the video is outdated as now its like 2 bucks a meal or something like that and 4 for steak but if you work with the right people they just say to tell the cook what you want and go back to work.

[@saeris2471]

If the cook ain't outside at 3 am smoking a cigerrete as I pull up i drive away because you know it's not gonna be a good wafflehouse. If the cook is outside having a smoke then you know that wafflehouse is about to be fire.

[@MissyMuthaTruckiN]

i tell ppl in ohio this n they don't believe me 😢

[@aetherseraphant]

It’s not free, money is taken from every check to cover the “free” meals

[@YCLPM_Art]

3 dollars a day.

[@Jadkinsa1]

@@YCLPM_Artain’t terrible when your unit lets you make anything

[@Crystal-e6h]

Right they take $3.15 every shift you work that week but remember this video was made in 2012 so back then I'm assuming food was free to employees but it's definitely NOT FREE ANYMORE and employees STILL HAVE TO PAY FOR "MAJOR MEATS" just like the lady was talking about in this video

[@DJ-fw8xl]

So it's free you saying lol

[@ItsJasmineRenee]

That's 15$ a week off your check. (I know I work there)

[@AnyColorYouLikeBro]

As someone who has been to several waffle houses... I already knew "what it's really like"

[@krisandersen8695]

I worked at Waffle House on-and-off for twenty years, almost always on third shift. I can promise you that it is NOT an easy job. The third shift customers range from friendly night-owls to bad tempered drunks and the early-risers who don't want to be awake. Some are great customers, some are not, but all of them expect great service for low cost and lower tips. The New Years Eve crowd is always challenging, but they're usually in a good mood. The store will be dead until about 12:30, but then it stays packed until about 4 am. At that point everyone leaves, and the staff gets to clean up, which can be just as exausting as serving the partiers was. The down side of waffle House employment is that it's difficult to make enough money to live on unless you work at a REALLY good location (ie near bars). They do have Employee Health plans, but those plans aren't very good. i'm a Type 1 diabetic, and the health plan would not cover ANYTHIN related to Diabets (just in case you were wondering, almost anything can be linked to Diabetes if an insurance company wants it to be).

[@stacydepoe974]

I can back her up on this. I'm an ex waffle house worker .

[@mynamesaberry8601]

​@@stacydepoe974 What do they pay hourly I am about to go to a job interview there. It doesn't say anywhere what they pay hourly. I know it differs from state to state and I live in a very low income state but what would where you're from what was the hourly

[@stacydepoe974]

Yes 3rd shifts are tuff.

[@stacydepoe974]

You can make a decent wage as a cook if you take all the test. Yes each state is different. They don't pay much. You work for tips when your a waiter or waitress. You work hard. Gotta be able to keep up

[@StarFleet_Tech1701]

I love hash browns "scattered, smothered and covered"

[@roachtoasties]

A couple comments: The tipped minimum wage is rock bottom in some states. If that's what Waffle House pays, basically the employees are working there for free. The pay is that low. If that story about customers helping the one employee that showed up to run the store is true, that opens up a huge liability issue for the store. If I ran a restaurant, that will absolutely never happen. The store would close if there was only one employee available. Maybe even two. As far as alcohol being served at Waffle House and customers getting drunk and destroying the place, is that supposed to be a feature?

[@duckbrew]

0:55 Hey that was MY pancake!😂

[@firstname__lastname]

$2 an hour?! The system is broken bro. We shouldn't have to rely soooo heavily on tips to make money!!

[@corbyn3819]

I disagree in this society taking a job is up to the person applying and then accepting the terms.

[@firstname__lastname]

@@corbyn3819 sometimes you have no choice. You cannot justify making 2 dollars an hour is better than making nothing at all. That is not real life bro.

[@megabrian756]

@@firstname__lastname reminder that you generally make up to 20 an hour if you aren’t an ass to your customers

[@Killer1986Chris]

@@megabrian756 That's their issue though, they wouldn't be able to earn tips.

[@mynamesaberry8601]

It's literally a 4 billion dollar industry. They can definitely afford to pay more than $2 definitely more than 10.

[@jordanvandiver]

That's a lie. The food isn't totally free. There is a 3 dollar per shift charge taken out your check regardless of if you eat or not

[@wickitklown90]

Main job requirements are a southern accent and the ability to throw hands. Also not give af about a hurricane.

[@Bill_N_ATX]

I remember looking at a Waffle House employment application. It didn’t ask if you had been convicted of a crime. It just simply had a line where you listed your convictions. I guess being a convicted felon doesn’t matter to being a great short order cook.

[@aoeulhs]

Thanks. I was wondering about that. I figured they'd have to be flexible given how hard it is and the low pay. The more options the better for ex-cons so good for them.

[@Killer1986Chris]

I dunno if I would trust a short order cook that hasn't been put into handcuffs by police.

[@Bill_N_ATX]

@@Killer1986Chris I worked in a restaurant kitchen for a couple of years as a kid right out of high school. I was the only one there without tats, a few convictions, and more than a casual acquaintance with drug addiction. Was a real eye opener for a pretty naive kid. Of course, what the waitresses taught me would fill the three or four chapters of an autobiography. After two years, when I decided to go to college, I had an education in real life romance, hard partying, and modern recreational pharmacology. Going to fraternity parties held no real interest for me. Too tame. Actually, I was ready to buckle down and pay attention in class. I was paying for college with money I’d worked for so I hardly went out at all. So I guess it worked out.

[@PBCrisis]

I got a Christmas card from my regular WH waitress years ago. They would start my order when I pulled into the lot. I wanted something different once and had to run in to stop them :D

[@drdata1967]

I had such a regular order at a taco bell near one of my jobs that the staff would play a game to see me walking up to the store so that as I walked up to the counter they would just hand me the bag of food that was pretty much the same thing every day. those doritos locos taco supreams are pretty good honestly.

[@djlos01]

@2:09 "Waffle House Manager "Katie Pierson" And her name tag says DEBO! LOL

[@jaythomas3118]

I’m a short order cook, and I do not have any felonies. Just got caught driving without a license. Other than that I’m a normal dude and I smoke weed and play video games….im 22 But as a cook they pay me on the low end 900$ a week, on the high end 1,200$ I’m at unit 1095, Antioch Tn.

[@robertekis2450]

I have found that the servers and cooks at the Waffle Houses I have visited are very friendly. For this reason alone I leave a larger tip than I normally would at other places (30 - 40 percent). Thanks to all the friendly Waffle House workers that I have met. I try to return the same respect and friendliness to all Waffle House workers.

[@Makoto03]

I had a Waffle House in my town for years but i never actually went until earlier this year. Great place but almost always busy.

[@marcdewey1242]

Last time I was at the local WH in my area in Taylorsville Indiana no one would wait on me, haven't been back there since.

[@robertlong5171]

I used to cook for the rodeo crowd when they let out at 200 am.

Waffle House takes at least $3 for each on-shift meal out of workers’ pay, whether they end up eating it or not, according to the petition from the Union of Southern Service Workers. The USSW called it “especially alarming” since many workers are paid a tipped sub-minimum wage “as low as $2.90 per hour,” not including gratuities.

[@vermontviking]

"Working at Waffle House is a unique experience.". Truer words have rarely been spoken.

[@adrianmitchell8586]

I'm gonna own one of these Waffle House Restaurants SOON......

[@DebraJohnson-k3z]

Love Waffle House. I have two within 2 miles from my house. I always give big tips. They are so friendly and work so hard.

[@philanderphillips2309]

You know if you remove the “W” from Waffle House you get “Awful House”. I’ve seen a gun three times in my life and two of those times were at Waffle House. It’s 3am, there’s still time to make one last bad decision.

[@zemajestic]

No that just means Men eat there.

[@jorgeldejesus8465]

don't change Waffle House , we love it as it is , greasy, noisy, buttery , delicious just like our southern Grandmas do it in our home , mad props to the ex-felon cook who do those eggs yummy ! eat that big delicious buttery Waffle with a little bit of fear of a fight between employees or a felony could happen , builds you character, period , Mad love to Waffle House!

[@tamedshrew235]

The shorthand killed my Waffle House career.

[@edfurbee7118]

In the late 80s when we lived in Duluth GA a brand new Waffle House was put in less than a mile from our home. We were so excited because we were now going to have a Waffle House close to us, we go to the opening weekend and we had breakfast. Because Waffle House's headquarters were in Norcross GA a lot of the corporate management team was at this unit's opening. As we were paying our check this gentleman from Waffle House corporate whose name tag read Butch asked us how it was? I said it was okay and he looked at me and said that was the worst okay he had ever heard he then asked which Waffle House do you normally eat at I told him typically at Spaghetti Junction and without batting an eye he looked at me and said hell there's the problem you've never eaten in a new Waffle House give it a month for everything to get seasoned then it'll taste like it should to you. He was right.

[@jeremymarsh1377]

Waffle House is way too expensive now under Bidenomics.I went there and got a ham and cheese omelet plate with a pecan waffle. It came up to $25 for that by the time I left a tip. That is way too much money for breakfast. I only ate there because it used to be cheap. The Awful Waffle lost a customer due to the price and Biden voters.

[@michaelmerck7576]

Waffle house has never been a cheap meal but sometimes it feels that way

[@SojournerOnSojourn]

It is NASTY putting condiment packages on the plate. Management made a ridiculous, convoluted method The owners must be sadistic

[@metaldrummingbymarkwarner6357]

We do not get any free food or drinks. They take a percentage of your pay each week even if you don't eat. I personally pay for way more food than I could ever have eaten.

[@GeorgiaSwag]

Grilled bacon chicken cheese 😊

[@EllenCPickle]

every time I go in I am overcharged, if I ask for copy of receipt they get angry then change my tip on my cc receipt! When I confronted them they really tried to argue with me, but I had org receipt ! And I tip good, not right!

[@jorgegomes4005]

I work at waffle house and changing your tip on a receipt is impossible, it's really rude of them for not giving you a copy tho

[@EllenCPickle]

@@jorgegomes4005 not impossible because it happened to me.

[@mynamesaberry8601]

​@@jorgegomes4005 What do they pay hourly I am about to go to a job interview there. It doesn't say anywhere what they pay hourly. I know it differs from state to state and I live in a very low income state but what would where you're from what was the hourly

[@jordanalandry1866]

@@mynamesaberry8601usually about $2.92/hour maximum before tips, which is NOT great even for serving the USA is ridiculous with tipping and I can tell u unequivocally that ppl are sick and tired of being obligated to ensure servers receive a fair wage, especially for just mediocre or less service. Prices are higher, wages haven't increased in any way shape or form to be congruent with increasing inflation/cost of living, their definitely NOT going to be keen on or able to tip the "expected obligatory" 20% minimum on every gd little purchase, and yet the profit margins for employers are only going up up up, they've GOT the means to pay their employees generously and compensate them based on performance and merit and still turn a handsome profit themselves and take the customer out of the middle, they shouldn't be in the equation at all and servers can't resent the customers it's their employers they need to take up the grievance with and if needed, DEMAND higher guaranteed hourly/salary pay refuse to work if every server did this collectively and cohesively the wheels would essentially come off the food service industry. My point being is if your time and work done is WORTH $2.92 an hour, that's what you'll accept them lucky them they have basically free labor don't expect them to offer more they've got someone they can strategically use. But if u know that's selling ursekf short then don't accept that u tell them what ur work costs/is valued at, assign value to ur work if an employer can't/won't pay their workers and do their part they oughtn't be in business. Personally I'd find somewhere else to work that pays a standard base hourly pay that exceeds the minimum wage for restaurant servers and doesn't use a convoluted archaic and also completely confusing and inefficient system of ordering expediting etc. Where ur likeky to actually learn skills and experience which are valuable anywhere aka relevant and guarantee a certain income security for urself and also in all likelihood have a higher average menu/ ticket price, and higher socioeconomic status of patrons thus increasing the potential for actual earned gratuities that u earned by exceptional service and recognition

[@susanreed8186]

I love the waffle House ❤❤❤

[@paulaitix77]

the silly language they use instead of computers and writing it down is due to lots of non english speaking peeps working there. Plus is not sanitary to put these markers on the plate

[@Wizardof]

I love WH. Folks just treat them with respect and be patient and let them finish smoke break. It is NOT that hard. And make your kids behave in the store. Yes I hate that the drinks are separate items unlike other places but, Bible says BE KIND. Hard to do I know just try.

[@SojournerOnSojourn]

Seeing videos of the slop slingers in back, and the "in and out in 20 minutes" .... Jeez. I'd never eat there. Blecch

[@carlthornton3076]

Very Good!... #39 ✝ {9-15-2023}

[@jeffyoung8726]

I LOVE Waffle House!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@Ghoulstille]

Sounds like a crap job to me.

[@bpcruiser]

Waffle House is the 💩. But Id never want to work there.

[@borgir9817]

The waffle house has found it's new host

[@jcoats5529]

I have never eaten there, nor do I intend to. Very low quality and unhealthy

[@PraisingWithFriends]

How did you get here? 🤣

[@tipsysmichigander6483]

Waffle House doesn't hold orders.... Yeah neither does 90% of all restaurants, that is not a "Special" Quality.

[@bivvystridents3752]

And this shit company expects people to do this for minimum wage?

[@mynamesaberry8601]

I am about to start working there as a server. Yes that really is low but you get to keep your tips. And take them home daily. Some people including tips make around $17 an hour