TX, USA
About a month ago I began to work at the new local coffee shop. After a couple of shifts studying a packet, I began training in the kitchen... that was 3 weeks ago. I and most of my coworkers are baristas.
The tip pool consists of everyone pooling 100% of our money to be divided amongst all baristas every hour... except I was never paid out. They insisted that I was not trained enough, although they did trust me to work independently.
This thing about me receiving many tips over the past several weeks, but only being allowed to keep a cumulative $0.00, may or may not be illegal, please lmk if it is.
What they did that is absolutely illegal is allowing all of my managers to be paid out by the tip pool, often at my expense. After I brought this concern to my manager's attention this past Sunday, the owner personally called me to yell at me on the phone and inform me that everything that he's doing is perfectly legal.
Today was my first shift where I wasn't being "shadowed," which is a practice that essentially consists of me doing all the work while a coworker watches me and then takes all of my tips. I ask one manager, "Since I'm working independently, this means I'm tipped out now?" She says, "No, just because you are working on your own doesn't mean you can participate in the tip pool. The owner and I will decide when you get to have tips."
Tbh I do have a bit of an attitude about it and I shrugged and said I don't understand why I can't have any tips that we all earn together. But I quickly drop the issue and continue working, even when everyone else ain't doing jack but chit chatting.
About an hour before I'm scheduled to leave, I am called into the office. The owner of the company is on the phone and two managers are present. They inform me that due to my "Unprofessional Body Language, Tardy, and unprofessional behavior towards management regarding the tip-pool operation," that I am fired, effective immediately. I was late for the first time today, by 6 minutes.
Am I overreacting? Like, I feel like I was retaliated against because I asserted my rights as a worker. Am I tripping?