Why does the minimum wage for tipped employees NOT include tips?

I think they (government) just don’t want to pay these employees, or companies don’t want to pay these employees.<br><br>The minimum wage for tipped employees is $2.13 if tips are included than the minimum wage is in this case greater than $2.13. Example $2.13 + $2.00 in tips = $4.13 minimum wage. Now I know you can’t control tips, that’s beside the point. The point is that they know they can get by paying less by including tips.<br><br>A better idea is to pay a higher wage than $2.13. Raise it to $7, $8 or $9. I personally would be willing to pay more for food if tipped employees were paid a higher wage. I’m not worried about the extra cost, I’m more worried that these people are making a very low wage.