Entitled waitress accuses busser of stealing her $10 cash tip, busser flips it on her and uses it as an excuse to not clean her tables: ‘I feel good I made my point.’

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Elna McHilderson • Managing Editor
Jun 27, 2025 9:00 AM EDT

Getting accused of theft is never fun. You know you are not the kind of person to ever do that, but not everyone around you does. Your coworkers hardly even know you, really! They just met you because of the job and only see you when they're on the clock, so they never bet a chance to really see the real you. That means if you work with an entitled Karen, buckle up for some accusations coming your way. 

 

Take, for instance, this innocent busser. He was just doing his job, dang good, I might add. He seemed like a bit of a neat freak and enjoyed making sure the restaurant's tables were sparkling. However, one day, after he cleaned up a table really well, one of the waitresses accused him of stealing her $10 cash tip… 

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  • Well, he used that insane accusation as the reason he no longer could bus her tables. Because he did not want to get accused again. That truly ruined her day, and she had to come crawling back apologizing and begging for his help. 

  • Cheezburger Image 10521298944
    via Unsplash+ (and MChe Lee)

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • "Accuse me of theft? Ill just follow the rules."

    Once upon a time, I was a busser in a well known Italian- American sit-down chain (Im sure you know the one). I didnt mind the work.
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  • It was satisfying seeing things get clean, and I even got to flex my public health knowledge when CO ID hit. Not to pat myself on the back, but I was a real powerhouse,
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  • known for hefting 40lb of dishes onto a tray at a time. Suffice it to say, I kept that dining room rolling, whether other bussers were scheduled or not.
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  • Enter "Monica". Monica and I were on decent terms. She was nice enough. We came in, we did our jobs, we went home. Well, one day, she thought she saw a
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  • guest leave her a cash tip. I bussed the table and didnt remember seeing one. She promptly asked me about it, to which I responded (having lost track of exactly
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  • which table it was) "Did you check under the Ziosk?" (Ziosk is the little computer at the table you can play games or pay with. I routinely left tips under them so they
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  • were easy to access by servers, but out of sight for would- be thieves.) She said she did check, and there was no cash. I shrugged and said "Sorry, then, I dont guess they ended up leaving anything."
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  • She insisted that she had seen them leave her at least a $10. I asked where she thought it would be then, and she glanced pointedly down at my pocket.
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  • I bristled. "I know you did not just accuse me of theft. The only cash in my pocket is $12 from the bartender at lunch. Ask the manager, III even empty my pockets."
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  • (It was common for the bartender to tip the busser, as the busser would run their dirty dishes also.) She sauntered off, I grouched about and returned to work, knowing full well I was right.
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  • Later on, I ran into the GM, whom I told about the situation. Knowing me, he simply chuckled and assured me he didnt believe for a moment that I had stolen anything. I
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  • offered again to turn out my pockets, but he declined, saying he believed me. Cut to the next shift I worked with Monica. It was a busy lunch and the hosts were asking
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  • for specific tables. Well, those tables belonged to Monica Already annoyed with her, I had put them on the bottom of my priority list. When I got to them I realized she hadnt pre-bussed them.
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  • Cheezburger Image 10521318912
    via Unsplash+ (and Getty Images)

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • Servers are supposed to never leave a table without a dirty plate or two. The bussers are only supposed to deal with small plates, a salad bowl, glasses, that sort of thing.
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  • This is done for the sake of efficiency. Well, I decided that if Monica hadnt pre- bussed the table yet, she probably also hadnt checked it for cash tips. So I radioed the host
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  • stand. "Sorry, there are other tables I can turn faster. Ask Monica to come pre- bus her section." This continued throughout the shift, and management
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  • noticed the slow turning of the section and asked me to go handle it. responded, "Not until she pre- busses. She falsely accused me of stealing tips, so I
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  • dont touch her tables until Im sure she has been there. and the easiest way to know if she's been there is to check if theyre pre- bussed." The manager understood
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  • my logic and left me alone. Monica had to pre-bus every single table, while literally every other table in the restaurant was clean. She wasnt getting sat, and thus wasnt making as
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  • much money. Fewer guests, fewer potential tips. The icing on the cake? This was a lunch shift. I was the only busser scheduled, so she
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  • couldnt go ask another busser to handle it. Even if she had, the rest of them were quite lazy, and also would not have touched it without a pre-bus.
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  • After about a week of this, she finally approached me, apologized for the false accusation, and asked that we go back to how things were before. I
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  • said fine, but if she ever so much as blinked at me wrong again, she'd be bussing her own tables. Perhaps not as satisfying a conclusion as other
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  • stories, but I feel good I made my point. Nobody ever accused me of theft again, primarily because I know good and well not to mess with anyone's money.
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