Line cooks do not get tips unless tipped employees voluntarily share their tips. This is a result of the Fair Labor Standards Act rule that was intended to stop restaurants and managers from skimming from servers' tips.

Do kitchen workers get tips?

Back of the house employees, such as cooks and dishwashers, may participate in a tip pool, but only if the employer doesn't take a tip credit. Because your company takes a tip credit for wait staff and bartenders, your company cannot require those employees to share their tips with non-tipped coworkers.

Do chefs get tips?

We do not think executive chefs or sous chefs need to be tipped. Those positions are generally well compensated, and many of them already have bonuses built into their compensation package. We're talking about tipping the people in the kitchen who make $10-$12 an hour.