Hey Pandas, How Do You Feel About The Practice Of Tipping? (Closed)

Posting from the UK. Tipping isn't as big a practice here as it is in the US because generally, retail workers here get a base wage and don't have to work on commission. However, I tend to tip when I feel the person deserves it. A friendly smile, a pleasant attitude, quick service, going that little bit out of their way to make my experience a good one - why shouldn't these things be rewarded?

I'm not in the USA, so my opinion may irk some Americans, however things in Canada are slightly different in some places, where servers make closer to minimum wage. If I tip, say, $15 to my server. The server is also waiting on 2 or 3 other tables (bless these hard working servers) at the same time during my hour at the restaurant (on average), and they tip $15, $10, $20, that server has already made $70 in that hour on top of the hourly wage they get. That's almost as much as I make in a whole shift assuming all the tips go to the server. I do not believe they are struggling as much as minimum wage workers.
As for other service industries, I leave it as an extra gratuity for exceptional service.
I absolutely do not like the idea of bullying, guilting, shaming, forcing customers to pay extra on top of the value on the bill. The more I think about it the more inappropriate it seems that customers are expected to pay the servers wages. Once it becomes about wages it's no longer a tip. A tip should be a gratuity, a thank you, a reward for providing a wonderful experience and ensuring the customer has been taken care of.

On that note, from the stories I've heard in the USA and some parts of Canada, servers are becoming feisty and aggressive when it comes to wage tipping expectations. From the moment the customer sits down to when they receive the bill, the server could give horrible service but still feel entitled to a tip because... they don't get paid from the restaurant boss. I may be repeating myself as I'm trying to make sense of all this, it puts the customer is a position of becoming the server's... sorta ... employer. But the customer doesn't have the power to fire a server if they acted in a terrible way. Yet, we're told we are their wage payer.
The point I'm getting at is there's not much motivation and encouragement for a server to bother trying to showcase their best service and attitude (I'm talking about a normal situation where both parties are being decent).

That is my take on the issue. Yes, I do tip when I feel it's due. But I don't like it being mandatory for all situations.

How about y'all pay waiters normal wages, then I can tip when I want to tip, instead of waiters expecting me to pay half of their salary? I'd be perfectly happy to pay more for my food and not be expected to tip, provided that the money goes to waiters' salaries.

In case you're wondering, I always pay 10-15 percent of the total bill.

Until the government forces all businesses to pay at least minimum wage (which needs to be increased!), those working service jobs are never going to be able to make a decent living. For the US, if you can't afford to tip, please don't go where people depend on it to live. My son and DIL are both servers with a 6mo. They can't make rent most months no matter how much they work. Tips at least ensure they can buy food and put gas in their cars

I like tipping because if you think someone deserves the extra tip if they did a good job then they get an extra bonus, but it shouldn't be relied on or factored into wages

U.K. here. Tipping is a compliment and demonstrates gratitude. It shouldn’t be a standard expectation. I get the whole “minimum wage” blah, blah, blah but frankly not my problem. Charge an appropriate amount for your produce rather than demanding I pay 20% more. What really hacks me off is the rudeness of some staff - literally getting abusive if you don’t tip. And especially when all you’ve done is pour me a drink. Serving me dinner is one thing but opening a bottle and pouring into a glass, than expecting me to congratulate you by paying more is just offensive.

Well at least you know, for the most part, that the money is going straight to the people you want it to. If there are no tips, the management would take more and still give out less.

I work at a beach restaurant/bar on the weekends. During the week I work for an eye doctor. 2 completely different worlds, but some weekends I make more than half my regular paycheck. I learned to never expect a tip. Tips are given as “extra” that as a server my job is to make sure you get everything you want, on time, as expected. With a smile on my face to make you feel comfortable and enjoy the experience you are paying for. A lot of servers just think slinging plates or drinks entitles them to a tip. There is no regulation that they need to be given! It’s something you earn and are grateful for. I wouldn’t want standard pay as a server (like my other job) because I know every weekend I have the opportunity to make as much as I want and it’s up to me. My other job I am a salaried employee so I don’t even get overtime anymore. Tips are pretty much equivalent to overtime, you got to put in the work

In New Zealand we don’t need to tip. Hospitality workers are at least paid a minimum wage. However, for excellent service I have tipped wait staff, on occasion.

I’m totally okay with it and rarely tip less than 20%, when we weren’t as financially stable, we didn’t go out often and went to more inexpensive places and still tipped well.

Our 15 year old is working at an ice cream restaurant behind “the bar”. She basically makes all of the ice cream & milkshake orders, they call it the fountain, people can also sit and order from her directly and she handles all of the to-go orders. It baffles me that she gets paid minimum wage (Ohio) because she isn’t technically a server. And she still gets tips, sometimes over $50 for a 4 hour shift. It seems like she maybe could make more than the servers since they make 1/2 of minimum wage plus tips.

Waiters? OK!
Cows? No.

The US capitalistic companies have done with servers what they do with everything else, take advantage.

Look at the posts from other countries. Tipping there is what it was supposed to be in the US; complimentary & based on the service.

Unfortunately bc US allows these companies to pay so little (federal minimum cash wage is $2.13 per hr, AK is $2.63 per hr and DE is $2.23 per hr!) that these servers *have* to rely on tips. These companies are making their servers beg for a living at this point bc not everyone understands this. (Check out Dept of Labor's Minimum Wages for Tipped Employees at DOL.gov)

I always tip at least 20% and always round up to the nearest dollar. Now, I dont eat out that often bc I cant afford it but when I do, I make sure my server is taken care of, even if that means I cant buy an appetizer that time round.

Sounds like in other countries servers are paid more in hourly wages allowing diners to tip based on service. (Please remember your servers do not cook your food so if something is wrong, tell them so they can fix it, dont dock their tip.)

So Bored Panda, I guess the answer to your question depends on what country's servers you are asking about.

I'm in the US and have worked in tipped professions my entire adult life. I HATE tipping. I want the value of my work reflected in my paycheck not the whim of a customer. I appreciate the tips folk give me and I always tip a minimum of 20% but the concept that your hard work can be valued depending on how your customer's day is going is absurd.

Here, in the USA, my husband and I make sure to tip well. I consider the way wages for staff are handled are terrible! These people need fair wages instead of depending on tips. This is just one of so many things wrong with my country.

I have actually been a sever before so I aways tip and I stack plates up for them and try to clean little bit of our mess up. I believe strongly in tipping my husband dose not but I aways tip

For what it’s worth. I usually tip the standard 15-20% of the total bill, because I realize that tip will help that waiter or waitress in a big way. Additionally I increase the tip based up their personality (if it’s clear they are having a bad day - hey it happens, if they are just rude overall, that’s another thing). If they are really good, I usually call the manager or establishment owner over and tell THEM so.

I don’t know anyone who wakes up and says, Gee I want to wait and sometimes bus tables for a living. And be over worked and underpaid.

Waiters, bartenders and valet are not the only ones who need tipping. Security guards, vanity agents (cleaners), drivers, delivery people, you name it also need to be tipped. Most of them don't earn enough to keep them going and tipping them actually helps out to meet the end of the month financial plans.