--- title: "Just Started Serving? What to Know Your First Week" description: "First week as a server: learn the top sellers and the allergen chart, start a daily tip log, and read your first pay stub. The federal rules, each one linked." url: https://www.tipmaxapp.com/us/answers/just-started-serving-what-to-know language: en publisher: TipMax (Entermaurs Incorporated) date_published: 2026-09-23 last_verified: 2026-09-23 --- # I just started a new serving job. What should I know? **Short answer:** **In your first week, learn the top sellers and where the allergen chart is, start a daily tip log, and read your first pay stub closely.** Required training and meetings count as paid work time. If you’re paid a tipped cash wage, as low as $2.13 an hour under federal law, your employer must tell you about the tip credit first. Wages plus tips must reach $7.25 an hour each workweek. ## Your first-week checklist | When | Do this | Why | | --- | --- | --- | | Before day one | Learn the menu’s sections, top sellers, and what each dish comes with | You’ll be asked on the floor. [Two-day plan](https://www.tipmaxapp.com/answers/how-to-memorize-a-menu-fast); [what to study first](https://www.tipmaxapp.com/answers/what-to-study-before-your-first-serving-shift) | | Day one | Ask where the allergen chart is and how an allergy order goes to the kitchen | Guessing about allergens can hurt someone. [Allergens for servers](https://www.tipmaxapp.com/answers/food-allergens-for-servers) | | Day one | Ask how tips are paid out (cash nightly, card tips on the check) and what tip-out or pool you’re in | DOL says a traditional pool has to be explained to you, including your contribution amount | | Day one | Write down your cash wage and whether you were told about the tip credit | Your employer must give that notice before taking a tip credit | | Every shift | Log the date, cash tips, card tips, and tip-outs with who got them | IRS Publication 531 asks for a daily tip record. [How to keep one](https://www.tipmaxapp.com/us/answers/how-to-keep-track-of-tips) | | Every shift | Note when you clocked in and out, and any unpaid meal break | You’ll check these against your stub | | First payday | Compare the stub to your notes: hours, cash wage, tips | [Server paycheck explained](https://www.tipmaxapp.com/us/answers/server-paycheck-explained) | | By the 10th of next month | Report last month’s tips to your employer if they were $20 or more | IRS Publication 531. Your employer may ask more often. | **Not tax or legal advice.** Your restaurant’s training and handbook come first where they add to this list. Your state may have stricter rules. ## Plain English ### Training: what to expect The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics says servers typically learn on the job, in training that usually lasts from several days to a few weeks, working with an experienced server. It says training covers serving techniques, the restaurant’s order and payment systems, and handling difficult customers. BLS also notes servers may meet with managers and chefs before a shift to go over the menu, specials, and ingredients for potential food allergies. Ask your trainer about the things every restaurant does differently: table numbers, the POS, steps of service, and side work. Write it down. Nobody expects you to know it all in week one. ### Learn the menu Start with the sections, the dishes that sell most, and what each one comes with. Quiz yourself instead of rereading. The [two-day menu plan](https://www.tipmaxapp.com/answers/how-to-memorize-a-menu-fast) and [what to study before your first shift](https://www.tipmaxapp.com/answers/what-to-study-before-your-first-serving-shift) have the details. For a bar menu, see [how to memorize cocktail specs](https://www.tipmaxapp.com/answers/how-to-memorize-cocktail-specs). ### Allergens: never guess FDA lists nine major food allergens: milk, eggs, fish, crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, soybeans, and sesame. FDA says reactions can range from hives to life-threatening anaphylaxis. When a guest mentions an allergy, check the allergen chart or ask the kitchen, and follow your restaurant’s process for flagging the order. See [Food allergens for servers](https://www.tipmaxapp.com/answers/food-allergens-for-servers). ### How you get paid DOL’s Fact Sheet #15 covers the federal rules. If your employer takes a tip credit, your cash wage must be at least $2.13 an hour, and your cash wage plus tips must reach at least $7.25 an hour for each workweek. If they don’t, your employer makes up the difference. Before taking a tip credit, your employer must tell you five things: your cash wage; the tip credit amount (up to $5.12); that the credit can’t be more than the tips you actually get; that all your tips are yours except for a valid tip pool among tipped workers; and that the credit doesn’t apply unless you’ve been told these rules. The notice can be oral or written. If you don’t remember getting it, ask. Your state may require a higher cash wage or no tip credit at all. DOL says the employer must follow whichever standard protects you more. DOL keeps a [list of state labor offices](https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/state/contacts). ### Tip-outs and tip pools Under the FLSA, your employer can require you to share tips in a pool. If you’re paid a tipped cash wage, the pool can include only workers who customarily and regularly get tips, like servers, bussers, and service bartenders, and your employer has to tell you your required contribution amount. Your employer, managers, and supervisors can’t keep any part of your tips. See [What is a tip-out?](https://www.tipmaxapp.com/us/answers/what-is-a-tip-out) and [Can managers take from the tip pool?](https://www.tipmaxapp.com/us/answers/can-managers-take-from-tip-pool) ### Start a tip log from day one IRS Publication 531 says you must keep a daily tip record so you can report tips accurately to your employer and on your tax return, and prove your tip income if you’re ever asked. For each workday, write: - The date. - Cash tips you got from customers or other employees. - Card tips your employer paid you. - The value of any noncash tips, like tickets. - Tips you paid out to other employees, and their names. If you use your employer’s electronic system, Publication 531 says you must get and keep a paper copy. Report each month’s tips to your employer by the 10th of the next month, unless they were under $20 for that job. See [How do I keep track of my tips?](https://www.tipmaxapp.com/us/answers/how-to-keep-track-of-tips) ### Breaks and hours - **Breaks:** DOL says federal law doesn’t require lunch or coffee breaks. If your employer gives short breaks of about 5 to 20 minutes, they count as paid work time. - **Meal periods:** usually 30 minutes or more, and unpaid only if you’re completely relieved from duty. If you have to watch your tables while you eat, DOL says you’re not relieved. - **Training and meetings:** DOL says these count as work time unless they’re outside your normal hours, voluntary, not job-related, and you do no other work during them. Required pre-shift meetings and job training count. - **Staying late:** work your employer allows is work time, even if nobody asked. Side work after you clock out still counts. - **Overtime:** at least one and a half times your regular rate for hours over 40 in a workweek. For a tipped worker, DOL says overtime is figured on the full minimum wage. See [Overtime for tipped employees](https://www.tipmaxapp.com/us/answers/overtime-for-tipped-employees). ### If you get sick Tell your manager as early as you can. Under the FDA Food Code, a food worker who’s vomiting or has diarrhea stays out of work. See [How do I text my boss that I’m sick?](https://www.tipmaxapp.com/us/answers/how-to-text-your-boss-you-are-sick) and [Calling in sick as a server](https://www.tipmaxapp.com/us/answers/calling-in-sick-as-a-server). ### If you’ll serve alcohol BLS says most states require workers who serve alcohol to be at least 18, some require them to be older, and some states, counties, and cities require alcohol-service training. Some states also require food-safety training for servers. Ask your manager what applies where you work. ## Common mistakes - Guessing when a guest asks about an allergen. - Waiting until the first paycheck to start keeping track of tips. - Not asking what tip-out or pool you’re in, and how much. - Doing side work off the clock. - Trying to memorize the whole menu the night before instead of the top sellers first. ## Official sources - [U.S. Department of Labor, Fact Sheet #15: Tipped Employees Under the FLSA (tip credit, notice, tip pools)](https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/fact-sheets/15-tipped-employees-flsa) - [IRS Publication 531, Reporting Tip Income (daily tip record; reporting by the 10th)](https://www.irs.gov/publications/p531) - [U.S. Department of Labor, Fact Sheet #22: Hours Worked Under the FLSA](https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/fact-sheets/22-flsa-hours-worked) - [U.S. Department of Labor: Breaks and Meal Periods](https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/workhours/breaks) - [U.S. Food and Drug Administration: Food Allergies (the 9 major food allergens)](https://www.fda.gov/food/nutrition-food-labeling-and-critical-foods/food-allergies) - [U.S. Food and Drug Administration: Food Code 2026 (employee health)](https://www.fda.gov/food/fda-food-code/food-code-2026) - [U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook: Waiters and Waitresses](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/food-preparation-and-serving/waiters-and-waitresses.htm) - [U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division: State Labor Offices](https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/state/contacts) ## Last verified September 23, 2026. Checked DOL Fact Sheets #15 and #22, DOL’s Breaks and Meal Periods page, IRS Publication 531 (revised December 2024), FDA’s Food Allergies page, the FDA Food Code 2026 employee-health sections, the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook page for waiters and waitresses (last modified August 27, 2026), and DOL’s state labor offices list. **Still open:** State rules on cash wages, breaks, alcohol service, and food-handler training differ and aren’t covered here. ## Related - [What should I study before my first shift?](https://www.tipmaxapp.com/answers/what-to-study-before-your-first-serving-shift) - [How do I memorize a menu fast?](https://www.tipmaxapp.com/answers/how-to-memorize-a-menu-fast) - [Food allergens for servers](https://www.tipmaxapp.com/answers/food-allergens-for-servers) - [Server paycheck explained](https://www.tipmaxapp.com/us/answers/server-paycheck-explained) - [How do I keep track of my tips?](https://www.tipmaxapp.com/us/answers/how-to-keep-track-of-tips) ## How TipMax helps with this Your first week is the easiest time to start a tip log and to get the new menu on your phone as cards. TipMax is an iPhone app for servers and bartenders that tracks tips and tip-outs and turns a restaurant menu into study flashcards. - Log cash and card tips per shift in seconds. - Record tip-outs every shift, with tip-out rules for each job. - Scan or upload a menu and get flashcards automatically. Download TipMax free: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/tipmax-study-track-earn/id6744850146 --- TipMax Answers explains public government guidance on pay and workplace rules in plain English for tipped workers. It is **not legal, tax, or accounting advice**. Rules change and local rules can add to them. Confirm with the agency linked on this page or a qualified professional. TipMax the app helps you track tips and pay; it doesn’t enforce wage law or decide disputes.