A waiter serves 100 coffees a day. His boss takes 100 euros and pays him 40.
100 coffees a day bring in 100 euros for the bar, but the waiter only takes home 40 net. Where do the remaining 60 go? Costs, taxes and the debate over the p
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
100 coffees a day: 100 euros in revenue, 40 for the waiter. Where's the rest?
A waiter serves 100 coffees at 1 euro each. The bar takes in 100 euros. The waiter gets 40 net. Where are the other 60? The question, seemingly simple, opens the debate about the distribution of wealth in the hospitality industry. The numbers clash with the reality of business costs and taxation, but the gap between what the worker generates and what he receives remains the core of the discussion.
The numbers in the example
The initial calculation starts from an assumption: 100 coffees sold at 1 euro generate 100 euros in revenue. The waiter receives 40 euros net per day, a figure some participants consider low, but which serves as a reference. At first glance, the bar owner would keep 60 euros. However, from that 60 you have to subtract the cost of the coffee, rent, electricity, water, the self-employed social security contribution, depreciation of the investment (a 100,000-euro loan to set up the business, as mentioned) and, above all, taxes. The owner's net profit is reduced to about 10 euros per day, according to the argument. The surplus value of labour, that extra the waiter generates that doesn't go into his pocket, is diluted in expenses and tax burdens.
The role of taxes
Taxes are the great black hole in the equation. The 21% VAT and income tax (around 24%) take a significant share: out of 100 euros in revenue, about 45 euros go to direct and indirect taxes. This leaves very little margin for business profit, and the worker, who already takes home 40 net, sees how his effort largely funds the State. Some analyses point out that the real "universal partner" is the Tax Agency, which takes the biggest slice of the pie.
Business risk vs labour exploitation
The debate pivots on two opposing positions. On one side, it is argued that the business owner takes the risk: he invests his capital, bears the losses if the business goes badly and only makes a profit if everything works. In this scheme, the waiter has a fixed salary and takes no risks, so his smaller share of the revenue is logical. On the other side, it is held that the worker generates the real value with his physical and mental effort, and that the owner appropriates a disproportionate share, even if it is small after expenses. The phrase "his sweat pays for the machines and the boss's margin" sums up this view. Some participants go further and question the wage system itself, proposing its disappearance.
The thread leaves an open question: is business profit a reward for risk or an extraction of surplus value? The numbers, with all their caveats, do not resolve the underlying ideological dilemma.
Related debates in the forum
A waiter serves 100 coffees at 1 euro each. The bar takes in 100 euros. The waiter gets 40 net. Where are the other 60? The question, seemingly simple, opens the debate about the distribution of wealth in the hospitality industry. The numbers clash with the reality of business costs and taxation, but the gap between what the worker generates and what he receives remains the core of the discussion.
The numbers in the example
The initial calculation starts from an assumption: 100 coffees sold at 1 euro generate 100 euros in revenue. The waiter receives 40 euros net per day, a figure some participants consider low, but which serves as a reference. At first glance, the bar owner would keep 60 euros. However, from that 60 you have to subtract the cost of the coffee, rent, electricity, water, the self-employed social security contribution, depreciation of the investment (a 100,000-euro loan to set up the business, as mentioned) and, above all, taxes. The owner's net profit is reduced to about 10 euros per day, according to the argument. The surplus value of labour, that extra the waiter generates that doesn't go into his pocket, is diluted in expenses and tax burdens.
The role of taxes
Taxes are the great black hole in the equation. The 21% VAT and income tax (around 24%) take a significant share: out of 100 euros in revenue, about 45 euros go to direct and indirect taxes. This leaves very little margin for business profit, and the worker, who already takes home 40 net, sees how his effort largely funds the State. Some analyses point out that the real "universal partner" is the Tax Agency, which takes the biggest slice of the pie.
Business risk vs labour exploitation
The debate pivots on two opposing positions. On one side, it is argued that the business owner takes the risk: he invests his capital, bears the losses if the business goes badly and only makes a profit if everything works. In this scheme, the waiter has a fixed salary and takes no risks, so his smaller share of the revenue is logical. On the other side, it is held that the worker generates the real value with his physical and mental effort, and that the owner appropriates a disproportionate share, even if it is small after expenses. The phrase "his sweat pays for the machines and the boss's margin" sums up this view. Some participants go further and question the wage system itself, proposing its disappearance.
The thread leaves an open question: is business profit a reward for risk or an extraction of surplus value? The numbers, with all their caveats, do not resolve the underlying ideological dilemma.
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Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (41 replies).
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