Joe’s Crab Shack will soon become the first major food chain to drop tipping. Around its many locations across the country, including seven New Jersey locations with one right in Eatontown, reports note that employees have mixed emotions about this change.  To account for the loss of tips, servers’ wages will be raised to about $14 an hour.  Along with the change in the server’s salaries, the business is also going to increase their menu prices. The prices will go up about 12 to 15 percent to offset costs.

Joe’s Crab Shack is owned by the Ignite Restaurant Group. Back in August, Joe’s tested its soon to be ¨no tipping policy¨ in eighteen different cities. The test went well and the policy will now roll out through the 95 other locations of Joe’s, though there is no set timeline for this to happen.

This change may be motivated by a national movement throughout American restaurants in an effort to address servers’ wages and reduce turnover.  The no tip policy aligns with “The Fight for $15,” a movement created by workers in the fast food industry which is fighting to earn a $15 per hour minimum wage for fast food workers.