Does it really incentivize superior service? If I am EXPECTED to pay a 20% tip for ANY kind of service?
I know it’s the American way - but that doesn’t mean it is right.
Tipping hides the habit of simply not paying people enough.
@JohnPhilpin Tipping is such a sham. Restaurants have effectively transferred 20-25% of the costs to the consumer and make us feel guilty if we don’t pony up. Whereas fast food workers don’t get or even expect tips. Guess the demographics of the types of workers.
@JohnPhilpin tipping is fine if it’s something on top of their salary. If it’s their entire salary the they’re working for free
@hjertnes a number of companies in the US pay staff in restaurants less than munimim wage - arguing that ‘tipping makes them whole’ I will dig out the stories and link later
@hjertnes short, to the point and spot on ... Thankyou for sharing - if only @gruber read stuff here .. maybe he could weigh in with either his argument for ... or ‘oops - you’re right ... didn’t think of that!’
Personally I think this is another example of why bloggers and podcasters need to take care when wading into areas they know nothing about.
Mentioned this before ... inane 120 plus minute rambles have switched me off some podcasts and others more so - where ill informed commentary about <choose topic that is nothing to do with the main theme of the podcast> is dropped into the middle and is so wrong it puts you off everything else going on.
// @dgold ... nicely done.
Back to that tipping thing
Do you tip a person who serves you at a bar?
Do you tip that person at the same rate as someone who comes to your table?
Do you tip someone in a 'ToGo' store - like when buying a Big Mac or Subway?
Do you tip someone more or less the same rate as when ordering ‘ToGo’ from a 'normal' restaurant?
You order burger and a beer for lunch. You tip the server 20%.
You then go to your local Hardware store, and someone helps you - in the process saving you $500 ( the cost of bringing in a 'pro' ). Do you tip them?
Why would you pay 2 or 3 dollars to have someone deliver a sandwich across 20 feet but nothing to someone who saves you $500?
These are the questions that sprang up in my mind this afternoon ….
@JohnPhilpin Most transactions in Norway are done by paying by debit or credit card. And places who accept tips have configured their terminal to ask for total amount before entering your pin. My experience is that only restaurants and bars/pubs ask for tips. I usually don’t tip because they get a salary. But I do if the service is better or more efficient than expected.
@hjertnes same here - my questions were more trying to highlight the stupidity of the tipping system - for example - why should I pay a bar ‘peep’ 20% of the bar tab - when I am stood right beside them and the beer they are serving - and pay exactly the same rate to someone running around the restaurant on my behalf.
@JohnPhilpin let me pile on another +1 …
When I moved to the Netherlands and asked about tipping in restaurants, I was told “you can round up for the symbolism, but there's no need. We ensure everyone is paid a living wage, here.”
Now I'm angry about it when I return to the US.
Maybe it is getting repetitive - but it is important to know this before you can even start to think about it - much less act on and do something.
What Your Barista Is Really Thinking as You Are About to Tip (Apple News)
Like waiters, some baristas and food-service workers qualify for a tipped wage that is typically lower than the minimum pay in their state. For example, the minimum wage in New York City is $15 an hour. But service workers can be paid as little as $10 an hour as long as tips make up the rest, according to the state’s Labor Department.
More on the tipping topic from NPR.
Tipping has gotten out of control: Three reasons behind tip-flation