Is the Labor Department scheming to take away restaurant servers’ tips? That’s the message some labor advocates are sending in response to a proposed rule-making by the Trump administration that would permit kitchen staff in certain states to receive a portion of servers’ tips.

More than 300,000 comments were submitted on the rule; many were copy-and-paste statements generated by labor groups. But mixed among these comments were reflections of genuine anger from servers who were concerned about losing their tips. As a 17-year veteran of the service industry, I hear their concerns. I share them. But I also know that they’re based on a deep misunderstanding of what a tip pool is and why it can be necessary.