A reliable source at the Cosmopolitan tells us that the 25¢-per-drink specification isn’t true. However, there are certainly issues regarding tip-sharing that impact cocktail waitresses. One is related to the IRS, for which a complex system that’s based on a negotiated tip-allocation is in place. This subject was covered in detail in a 2007 Question of the Day. Last year, when the IRS sought a larger cut of tip income, Ledger Link’s John Rossheim reported, "In Nevada, casinos have had tip rate determination agreements with the IRS for many years … In these agreements, the establishments accept IRS estimates, and in exchange, the IRS says it won’t audit the establishments or their workers."
Cocktail waitresses also have to contend with what’s known in the business as "lay off" (or "tipping out"), which means sharing a portion of their tips, or "tokes" as they’re more commonly referred to in Vegas, with the bartenders and/or bar backs. A former cocktail waitress tells us it was customary when she worked at various casinos, including the Frontier, to give bartenders a 10% share "because if you don’t, you’re screwed," getting slow service and rude treatment from the bar staff. Culinary Union spokeswoman Bethany Khan says, "It’s most likely a property [by property] issue … at the discretion of the bartenders and the cocktail servers. They probably get together and decide something like that."
