An Arkansas waitress has been fired after receiving a $4,400 tip which she was reportedly told to split with the rest of the staff.
Ryan Brandt was let go from her job at Oven and Tap in Bentonville for violating the restaurant's policies about servers pooling tips together, according to Fox 59.
According to the outlet, estate agency business owner Grant Wise arranged for over 40 people to have dinner at the restaurant earlier this month. The agreement was that they would each leave a $100 tip for Brandt and another server waiting on them that night. Wise said he had called the restaurant ahead to confirm its tipping policy to ensure there were no glitches and at first everything seemed to go according to plan.
"It was an incredible thing to do and to see her reaction was awesome, to see what that meant to her, the impact that it’s had on her life already," he said.
However, after the party had left, Brandt said she was told the tip would have to be split with all of her co-workers.
"I was told that I was going to be giving my cash over to my shift manager, and I would be taking home 20%," she said.
Wise explained that he had never intended for the tip to be pooled with those who did not wait on his party and asked the restaurant to return the gratuity so that he could give it to Brandt outside. After that, Brandt was fired.
"It was devastating. I borrowed a significant amount for student loans. Most of them were turned off because of the pandemic but they’re turning back on in January and that’s a harsh reality," she said.
Oven and Tap declined to provide further details about the firing.
"After dining, this large group of guests requested that their gratuity be given to two particular servers," the restaurant said in a statement, according to Fox 59. "We fully honored their request. Out of respect for our highly valued team members, we do not discuss the details surrounding the termination of an employee."
Wise has since launched a fundraiser via GoFundMe to assist Brandt.
"I can't fully understand why this would happen, especially so close to the holiday season," he wrote on the campaign's page. "What I do know is that we want to do everything we can to help this sweet woman through the holiday season and get back on her feet."