To: Massage Establishments
Massage establishments should stop keeping so much of the cut
It's time to stop being greedy and let those doing the hard work of massaging to keep more of their earned wages! Many of these business owners are keeping 70% or more of what they charge for a massage, while the therapist is lucky to see 20-30%. Meanwhile it's the therapist doing the grunt work. It's the therapists who must pay to maintain their liability insurance, their license and pay for continuing education courses. Not to mention that many places want you to be an "independent contractor," thereby subjecting a therapist to a higher tax rate. One could argue that the business owner has to pay rent and other costs. True, but when these owners can afford 5 or more vacations a year for themselves and their partner, it begins to look like greed. Therapists can barely pay their bills yet the owner is vacationing around the world.
Why is this important?
The public doesn't realize just how little their therapist receives. What's worse is that as they try to stay competitive, they keep lowering the price of massages, which also lowers wages AND tip amount. People tend to follow the 15%-20% rule. But on a $60 massage, that's only $12, far short of the norm of $20 per each hour. The public should realize that 15%-20% is great for a server. In 60 minutes, your server might only spend about 10 minutes total with you between your order, bringing your food, cashing you out, while your therapist devotes the entire 60 minutes to JUST you!
