Do you tip? Do you tip in any and all situations where you might be expected to? Do you tip in advance or upon completion of the service. etc.
... just as the State has no money of its own, so it has no power of its own - Albert Jay Nock
I always tip, except when they do an extremely bad job.
I find the whole expectation of tipping every time you are served when seated quite laughable. The man who stands behind the Subway counter making sandwiches all day is not included in this culture?
I only tip when the service rendered upon me exceeds my expectations.
I tip when the service is good.
If it is terrible, I don't tip.
I tip at places that depend on tips. For instance, waitresses get less than minimum wage at some places because the place of business includes tips into the final paycheck. So the waitresses/waiters depend on tips to even get enough money above minimum wage. It's a legal instituted law that doesn't have to follow minimum wage laws. (and this post isn't about the good and bad of minimum wage it more about getting 2.00 an hour versus 10.00 or more in this society. Nobody can live on 2.00 an hour in this society.)
In Spain, restaurant owners prefer their customers not to tip as they want to avoid competition between waiters. I find this ironic. But, it's not much different in the U.S., where many restaurants spread tips evenly amongst all waiters.
I always tip. In college I would tip bartendresses between 100-200%. Yes it would be very expensive at the start, but would eventually end up saving a lot of money in the long run.
I tip when I am expected to tip. I'm a Swede, and I lived in the USA for a year. In the USA people even tip their haircutters, like, wtf. I didn't know that though, so I didn't tip my haircutter... Anyway, I tipped everywhere I was expected to. In Sweden you only tip waiters/waitresses, and you only have to give them 10% of the order in tips, in the USA, you were expected to tip ATLEAST 15%. Madness!
Anyway, I dislike tips, it feels too much like charity to me. I think it's a bad business model. The manager can easily keep track of what the staff is doing, and the customer can always complain when there's horrible service. Any raises in salary/bonuses could be handled by the manager. Some libertarians in Sweden insist that tips are very capitalistic since they get the staff to compete amongst each other. I would say that it's just a business model, a form of paying staff, and as long as it is voluntary, it is capitalistic.
Are you barking mad? Tell me more about this seemingly insane behaviour of yours.
Arvin: I tip when I am expected to tip. I'm a Swede, and I lived in the USA for a year. In the USA people even tip their haircutters, like, wtf. I didn't know that though, so I didn't tip my haircutter... Anyway, I tipped everywhere I was expected to. In Sweden you only tip waiters/waitresses, and you only have to give them 10% of the order in tips, in the USA, you were expected to tip ATLEAST 15%. Madness! Anyway, I dislike tips, it feels too much like charity to me. I think it's a bad business model. The manager can easily keep track of what the staff is doing, and the customer can always complain when there's horrible service. Any raises in salary/bonuses could be handled by the manager. Some libertarians in Sweden insist that tips are very capitalistic since they get the staff to compete amongst each other. I would say that it's just a business model, a form of paying staff, and as long as it is voluntary, it is capitalistic.
Arvin: I always tip. In college I would tip bartendresses between 100-200%. Yes it would be very expensive at the start, but would eventually end up saving a lot of money in the long run. Are you barking mad? Tell me more about this seemingly insane behaviour of yours.
if you are known as a very generous tipper, at least at the bars I would frequent, you would get charged for less and less of what you actually drank. By the time I was a senior, I was probably ordering 40-50 dollars worth of alcohol (sometimes more), being charged for 5 and tipping 20-25.
Eh depends. Usually I do, sometimes I don't. Depends on how I'm feeling and what the service was like, etc.
Do you tip? Do you tip in any and all situations where you might be expected to?
There is no situation in which it might be expected (I'm not American; everywhere else, people are paid by their employers...)
wilderness has it right. It's wise to tip people who depend on tips. If you don't tip well when you get good service, you might get an unexpected surprise.
Political Atheists Blog
In Europe, I've heard tipping is frowned upon in many instances, because restaurant workers organized and demanded to be paid in regular wages instead of tips. The thinking seems to be that if other professions receive regular pay regardless of whether every customer leaves satisfied, they are entitled to the same treatment. Not tipping at a place that expects tips as part of wages is a bit like not paying full price for your groceries in the market because you didn't like the cashier, isn't it? This attitude seemed to be even more so when I visited Korea, I got the impression that tips were regarded as borderline 'pity money' or slightly insulting, but you might want to confirm that with a native.
Supposedly in France, for example, the treatment of wait staff used to be poor; you may have heard the stereotype of a French waiter (usually grown men) being called "garcon," which translates as boy. Imagine coming to that everyday at work.
I've never had any really bad service in Europe, but felt the wait staff had less of a servile attitude than I''m used to stateside (I assume because they earn wages instead of tips).
At the same time, I've worked as a bartender and waiter in the U.S., and some individuals, out of generosity or to show their wealth, like to tip generously when they can - I think I would have earned less if I had regular wages. There's certainly worse work than food service, but it's often demanding.
When I was bar tending, the minimum expected tip was $1 per drink, F.Y.I. Not sure if that's still par...
Also, I think there's a saying along the lines of "be nice to the people who handle your food." Makes sense!
I hate the concept of tipping. Especially since I do not know how tips are allocated. I wouldn't mind my tip being split with my waiter and the cook for my meal. But just the concept of my tip going to another waiter I have no contact with is appalling. That's why I have started tipping not using $$. At this one bar and grill. I had a zoo ticket I did not plan on using. So I left that. Had a B&N card with a good balance on it that I left.
In circumstance when I don't have items like those, I tip between 10%-15% usually. 20% on rare occasions. about 50% I give to my hair stylist.
All in all, I look at it this way. People who tip bad still contribute to the success of the business. So I do not see the mindset of people who say to not eat out if you can't afford to tip well.
Back here people always tip at bars and restaurants (10-15%). But than again, prices here are much , much lower that the gold you pay for the sh*t they serve in the new world, so a small tip is actually a pleasure.
Because I once had a job where I depended on tips, I can appreciate the difference between being tipped just 2 or 3 dollars, and not receiving anything.
To be honest, people who dont tip, especially when the employee depends on tips, strike me as extraordinarily cheap.
You can afford to order $60 worth of pizza, but cant afford to tip $3? Come on.
I always leave a 6 dollar tip. It's my set standard.
Couple weeks ago I had a coupon for a free ice cream at Cold Stone, and I put 2 dollars in the tip jar and confused the girl who was making it.
I tipped 2$ for a haircut today. A few years back when I was in highschool, I didn't tip for a haircut because I didn't know it was customary because I wasn't used to paying for my own haircuts.
No. I'm a miser.
“Socialism is a fraud, a comedy, a phantom, a blackmail.” - Benito Mussolini"Toute nation a le gouvernemente qu'il mérite." - Joseph de Maistre
There's a fancy sandwhich shop (or a gourmet sandwhich shop rather seeing that they sell wine) around here, and you order something and they make it right there like Subway, but you can leave tips. What through me off is that recently I paid with my card and it had the line to write in a tip on the receipt, and I left it blank. I'm wondering if I was supposed to leave a tip for the production of a sandwhich.
A.K.A. bribing them to breach their employment contract.
But, it's not much different in the U.S., where many restaurants spread tips evenly amongst all waiters.
When I learned that I stopped tipping forever. It's a good scam for employers pay less wages.
Not much of a tipper here either, they should tip me with extra food. I paid for the food and the service already, what gives?
This is apparently a Man Talk Forum: No Women Allowed!
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Huh? No, you didn't pay the full price for the service - you paid a discounted price because the server has agreed to be paid less than par in expectation that he/she will receive par wage in compensation for professional service rendered when the gratuity is paid by the customer ex post . In other words, you took advantage of his/ her trust and good will.
I can't believe the amount of commenters saying they don't tip servers while overlooking this.
Disclaimer: Layperson - don't assume anything I say on economics is true.
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"No person is so grand or wise or perfect as to be the master of another person." ~ Karl Hess
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I hate the culture of tipping. I hate being in debt or having someone be indebted to me. And there is no more insidious debt than a debt a gratefulness. I don't want to have to be grateful for good service, and I don't want to have anyone be grateful to me for tipping. Write down on paper what I owe precisely so we can settle this business like and so there is no expectation of gratitude.
Thank god I live in an almost totally non-tipping region of the globe.
Well, that would overlook the fact that should everyone stop tipping, the discount would disappear. So, let’s make up our minds J
"I hate the culture of tipping. I hate being in debt or having someone be indebted to me. And there is no more insidious debt than a debt a gratefulness. I don't want to have to be grateful for good service, and I don't want to have anyone be grateful to me for tipping. Write down on paper what I owe precisely so we can settle this business like and so there is no expectation of gratitude."
I certainly respect that position--but is it really all that much trouble to understand the simple convention as it's practiced? 20% is the norm--less for sub-standard service, more for superior service. The flip side to what you pointed out is the benefit accrued to the customer in the form of the incentive on the part of the server to give superior , as opposed to sub-standard, service.
Tipping is great on many levels:
If you're paid in cash, you are more likely to give the Taxman the finger. Some of a service persons tips (cash) might go unreported to the IRS. That alone is reason enough for me to tip.
Another benefit for the person receiving a tip is that they can take it home that night to spend. There is something to be said for not having to wait till payday.
One of the above posters mentioned the discounts you can receive if you become known as a generous tipper. Indeed, and the pizza guy will never be late either.
Here are the general rules for tipping (please ignore if you're not interested):
The people at subway have earned a tip if you cannot complete your order using the words 'yes' and 'no.' The leftover change from your total is a good start.
A waitress or bartender deserves a minimum of a 1$ or 10%, whichever is larger. Unless they have cursed at you. Even if you are ordering to-go. 20-25% should be the usual.
Pizza guy: 3$ for the first pizza, 2$ for the second, 1$ for each additional. No exceptions.
Furniture/electronics delivery crews earn 5-10$ each if they don't damage anything in your home. A drink of some sort should be offered also.
If you are paying less than 15$ for a haircut the tip should be 2-5$ if you are happy. If you are paying more than $15 your tip should approach 50%.
If you go to the same gas station regularly, you should give a small tip to the attendant atleast every 4-6 months. Or anytime they check your oil, tire pressure, etc...
*** All figures are expressed in 2007 Dollars and may be subject to inflation***
I thought the pinco's were the tightwads?
If the tipping is customary I always do it. $3 on delivery, $3-4 on haircut, $X chip at casino for the dealer, 15-20% for restauraunt, $1-2 for bartender per drink (in NYC atleast). $3 bucks for the cabby
Its money under the table, untaxed and completely voluntary. Tipping is the most the most free market oriented transactions I can think of that occurs in our daily lives.
To be stingy or take up with customary tipping (as long as it is with in reason) = jerk