It's happening... backlash against tipping

18,498 Views | 139 Replies | Last: 5 mo ago by aggiehawg
jja79
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Not at all what I said.
LOYAL AG
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Sq 17 said:

LOYAL AG said:

Oh dear God. Twice in one week we have someone that doesn't think this through before they post. Hopefully we won't go back and forth on it like we did earlier in the week.

Quote:

Indeed. Tipping long ago ceased to be a reward for good service, and became a scheme for restaurant owners to make their customers pay most of their waiters' wages so they don't have to.


This is just such a bad take. Waitstaff makes $2.13/hr plus tips and in a town like CS that works out to about $15/hr. Remove tipping from the equation and the owner will have to raise wages from $2.13 to $15 to keep his staff in place. Then he raises prices commensurate with the increase in labor costs and we're back to where we started except that the owner has paid $15 v $2.13 and your meal cost $20 with no tip instead of $16 plus a $4 tip.

The important point is that the owner literally saves no money on the "wages" received in tips versus the ones received in hourly pay. None. Not one cent. He even pays SS and Medicare taxes on the tips each person receives.

Tipping in a restaurant setting is still a reward for a good job, a chance for the waiter to make more than $15/hr by being good at their job. Does it work? Different conversation but this notion that the restaurant saves money with the tipping system in place needs to die because it just isn't true.


You'd be wrong on saving money
A waiter standing around when the restaurant is not busy is cheaper at $2 an hour than at $15 dollars an hour
Back in College dated a a girl that waitressed part time. It would piss her off when it was slow and her manager wouldn't let her clock out and leave
He would eventually let her clock out but it was only after she rolled silverware or cleaned tables for 45 minutes of course that 45 minutes only cost the manager $1.75 so he had no imperative to let her leave


That's a random shift here and there which happens but we aren't really talking about the occasional slow shift are we? But yes on the odd occasion when the restaurant is over staffed because it's slower than expected the owner is saving a few bucks waiting for it to get busy. You got me.
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Seamaster
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Having been a waiter, I almost always tip 20% or more (unless the waiter is rude or something).

I am growing weary and annoyed with the request for tips for everything though.

At Jimmy John's, the screen is flipped around and now I am supposed to tip the girl who took my order I guess?

SpreadsheetAg
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I typically tip very generously at a restaurant where I am sitting down...

Tipping for a transactional thing (coffee at a shop, pizza I pick up, a deli sandwich, etc.) ... it rankles me that they even ask.
Burdizzo
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Seamaster said:

Having been a waiter, I almost always tip 20% or more (unless the waiter is rude or something).

I am growing weary and annoyed with the request for tips for everything though.

At Jimmy John's, the screen is flipped around and now I am supposed to tip the girl who took my order I guess?





We have a sandwich shop near our office. It functions similar to most sandwich shops where they make the sandwich in front of you. The people there are cool and work hard to do a good job. They were also open during COVID when a lot of other sandwich places around us were shut down. The same staff pre-Covid still works there today. I don't mind tipping them generously.
PrestigeWorldwideAg12
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I posted on TexAgs... Tip me.

In all honesty, I understand tipping servers, folks who dry off your car at the car wash, hell I even tip flight attendants when I order adult beverages. However, I cannot understand driving up to the to-go window at Rudy's for a couple of breakfast tacos and being prompted to tip 15%, 18%, or 20% with a little link on the bottom that just says continue.
CowboyGirl
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LOYAL AG said:

Sq 17 said:

LOYAL AG said:

Oh dear God. Twice in one week we have someone that doesn't think this through before they post. Hopefully we won't go back and forth on it like we did earlier in the week.

Quote:

Indeed. Tipping long ago ceased to be a reward for good service, and became a scheme for restaurant owners to make their customers pay most of their waiters' wages so they don't have to.


This is just such a bad take. Waitstaff makes $2.13/hr plus tips and in a town like CS that works out to about $15/hr. Remove tipping from the equation and the owner will have to raise wages from $2.13 to $15 to keep his staff in place. Then he raises prices commensurate with the increase in labor costs and we're back to where we started except that the owner has paid $15 v $2.13 and your meal cost $20 with no tip instead of $16 plus a $4 tip.

The important point is that the owner literally saves no money on the "wages" received in tips versus the ones received in hourly pay. None. Not one cent. He even pays SS and Medicare taxes on the tips each person receives.

Tipping in a restaurant setting is still a reward for a good job, a chance for the waiter to make more than $15/hr by being good at their job. Does it work? Different conversation but this notion that the restaurant saves money with the tipping system in place needs to die because it just isn't true.


You'd be wrong on saving money
A waiter standing around when the restaurant is not busy is cheaper at $2 an hour than at $15 dollars an hour
Back in College dated a a girl that waitressed part time. It would piss her off when it was slow and her manager wouldn't let her clock out and leave
He would eventually let her clock out but it was only after she rolled silverware or cleaned tables for 45 minutes of course that 45 minutes only cost the manager $1.75 so he had no imperative to let her leave


That's a random shift here and there which happens but we aren't really talking about the occasional slow shift are we? But yes on the odd occasion when the restaurant is over staffed because it's slower than expected the owner is saving a few bucks waiting for it to get busy. You got me.
It has admittedly been a very long time since I was a server, but as I recall there was at least a portion of every shift where we were on the clock and the restaurant was either not yet open or not very busy. For example, if you worked the closing shift, there was at least an hour to an hour and a half of cleaning, rolling silverware for the next day, etc. that we did after closing. And if you opened, we had to come in at 10 to prep, make tea, etc. Between lunch and dinner there might be only 1-2 tables at any given time in the whole place. So at least in my experience, it was not a random, infrequent thing for servers to be on the clock and not earning big tips.
McNasty
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Seems like the minimum tip on electronic pay pads went from 15% to 20% during covid and never came back down, even with inflated prices.
cecil77
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SpreadsheetAg said:

I typically tip very generously at a restaurant where I am sitting down...

Tipping for a transactional thing (coffee at a shop, pizza I pick up, a deli sandwich, etc.) ... it rankles me that they even ask.
Perfect two sentence summation...
jokershady
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Chick-fil-A never had asked me for a tip when they do curbside…..so why should I tip at any other place where I'm picking up food.

That'll always be a 0 for me
hammerhead
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What drives me crazy is when they turn that machine around and there are three programmed options and the lowest is 20% and goes up from there..

Yes, you can do a custom tip but start it at 15% or lower and go up.

I have also started to put the meal on the card and leave a cash tip or just flat had the cash the the server.
Slicer97
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bmks270 said:

Slicer97 said:

Ag_of_08 said:




Ah yes, don't enjoy the fruits of your labor peasant. You must tip a fixed percentage, even if it means paying someone more per hour than you make because the food cost has arbitrarily shot up.
And this is why the tipping on percentage is stupid. Why should the server get a bigger tip because I ordered a steak instead of a chicken breast? Why should they make less because I ordered a chicken breast instead of a steak? They're doing the same amount of work and providing the same level of service in either case.


Because meal ticket price is correlated to the number of items ordered. More items, more work.
Not in the example I gave.
Donghorn
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ts5641 said:

TexAgs91 said:

Jeff84 said:

Here's the problem I have with the way many of these places do tipping:

They want me to tip BEFORE I taste or use their product. I don't mind tipping as a reward for good service or a delicious meal. But too many times I have been asked to tip (Starbucks for example) before I have even had a sip of coffee.

I understand why people are getting fed up with this.

You have to tip according to their service. If they want a tip before providing service then you'd have to tip them 0%
It's a psychological game. At my favorite coffee shop, you order your coffee and then she flips over the iPad to complete your transaction. Then there are the tip choices. I like this place and the people and immediately feel like I have to tip so I typically do.
Also, when I order pickup or delivery I feel like if I don't tip they're going to mess with my food.
Do you feel the need to tip because of the extra soy in your latte?
I don’t start threads, I end them…
Donghorn
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PrestigeWorldwideAg12 said:

I posted on TexAgs... Tip me.


Just the tip?….*ba-dum tschhh*…
I don’t start threads, I end them…
74OA
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The idea that employers deliberately underpay their people and there's some sort of implied social contract that I'm expected to make up the difference with my tip rubs me the wrong way.

I'm happy to tip for good service, but it's reached the point that at least 20% is expected regardless of how someone does their job and regardless of how little personal service is inherent in the interaction (e.g. take-out).

It's the expectation of something extra for doing nothing extra that grates.
HoustonAg2106
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I only tip for waiters/waitresses, haircuts, and delivery drivers. Anything where I am ordering something at a counter is not getting a tip
combat wombat™
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Sharpshooter said:

I am a traditional 20%+ tipper who has cut back because of this garbage.


I usually tip 20% at a full-service restaurant. I have grown tired of having counter service staff turn that little iPad around for me to add a tip at stores where all they did was hand me a bag of food and where they are being paid AT LEAST minimum wage. Servers are entitled to tips because their employers pay them less than minimum wage.

One of "restaurants" defaulted to a 20% tip!

During Covid a lot of these places got into the mindset the "tips are way to show the staff that you appreciat them". We started tipping people who wouldn't traditionally get tips. And now they've become expected. Well, you know what? Piss off!
Stat Monitor Repairman
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Family run taquerias are the cleanest nowadays and the only folks that gaf.

Any chain establishment is absolutely wrecked inside.

Don't even clear tables any more. **** everywhere and some pimple faced kid flipping the screen asking for a tip before they handle your food.
Burdizzo
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Stat Monitor Repairman said:

Family run taquerias are the cleanest nowadays and the only folks that gaf.

Any chain establishment is absolutely wrecked inside.

Don't even clear tables any more. **** everywhere and some pimple faced kid flipping the screen asking for a tip before they handle your food.



I wouldn't go so far as to say that. I tried a new hole in the wall taco shop in SA last week. I paid in cash at the counter, and then I saw the saw person who took my cash with bare hands use those same unwashed hands to grab tortillas and put them on another customer's plate. Big no no
BudFox7
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Tipping waiters and bartenders is a nonsense guilt or pride based social construct that directly displaces employment costs onto the customer. Hard to believe there are people tipping at places like Jimmy John's.

Some person relaying words from you to the person actually cooking your food and then carrying the plate of food to the table is worth min wage. Unless there is some entertainment value being added, this task is worth min wage. Certainly not worth 15-20% of an $80-$150 check.
TRADUCTOR
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GAC06 said:

Lots of first world places where tipping isn't really a thing. Tipping is a stupid custom as it exists here.


Lot of things are not 'really a thing' and that is why they are not the USA, the best country in the world.
jimbo457
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I did my time in the service industry and as a result, I consider myself a decent tipper. I am bothered by a couple of things however that I've seen shift towards in recent years.

Of course, the constant requests for tips by someone that is simply taking your money and handing you food is problematic as most have said here but is anyone else bothered by the fact that the expectation has gone from 15% to 18, 20, 22% as seen on most restaurant receipts? The 15% option generally isn't even precalculated anymore. I am also pretty wound up anytime a tip is automatically added to my bill, and then there's the line for adding more tip. You have to be careful because you could be tricked into double tipping.
Stat Monitor Repairman
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Resturant covers up no tip option with tape.

/reddit
GAC06
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Carry cash.

Kinda surprised they had 13% as an option
Logos Stick
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Lol, wow.
Aston04
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ts5641 said:

TexAgs91 said:

Jeff84 said:

Here's the problem I have with the way many of these places do tipping:

They want me to tip BEFORE I taste or use their product. I don't mind tipping as a reward for good service or a delicious meal. But too many times I have been asked to tip (Starbucks for example) before I have even had a sip of coffee.

I understand why people are getting fed up with this.

You have to tip according to their service. If they want a tip before providing service then you'd have to tip them 0%
It's a psychological game. At my favorite coffee shop, you order your coffee and then she flips over the iPad to complete your transaction. Then there are the tip choices. I like this place and the people and immediately feel like I have to tip so I typically do.
Also, when I order pickup or delivery I feel like if I don't tip they're going to mess with my food.
Pay in cash if the Ipad screen messes with you. I did that for a while.

Lately, I just do not give two f****... Almost every place is asking. The answer is no unless you are a server or bartender.
valvemonkey91
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I tip 20% minimum at restaurants and bar tabs. I usually tip $1 per beer for the beer well girl. I don't tip at Starbucks or fast food places. Rarely order pizza and not sure what I tipped for delivery last time, but I tipped the driver. I have never ordered Uber/Waitr/Doordash/etc. They are too expensive and I'm not paying $25 for a #2 with cheese meal from a burger place. People that do that (unless extremely wealthy) are stupid. No wind this geneartion that does this "can't seem to get ahead".
WoMD
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Stat Monitor Repairman said:



Resturant covers up no tip option with tape.

/reddit

Makes it worth taking the few seconds to input a $0.05 tip to round up to the next dollar.
bthotugigem05
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No tipping culture has been one of my favorite parts of moving to Australia
agwrestler
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The ONLY situation where someone in the food service industry should earn a middle class "living" is if they are the owner/operator/Sr. Manager. Everything else is entry-level.
peacedude
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IMPORTANT: Do NOT leave tips on cards!!! Leave cash (within a handshake) for your server/bartender.

There are a sh*tload of crappy servers that rely on the hard work of other servers in order to earn their tip-share. It's glorified socialism: "Your money is my money." Additionally, the manager will almost always (nearly 100% of the time) reduce your server's paycheck in order to skim off the top ("Well, I was helping you when you got slammed.").

I've worked in eight different bars/restaurants since 1996, and it's always been that way at every stop. Personally hand the server the tip so that it's never factored into any tip-share equation.
eric76
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peacedude said:

IMPORTANT: Do NOT leave tips on cards!!! Leave cash (within a handshake) for your server/bartender.

There are a sh*tload of crappy servers that rely on the hard work of other servers in order to earn their tip-share. It's glorified socialism: "Your money is my money." Additionally, the manager will almost always (nearly 100% of the time) reduce your server's paycheck in order to skim off the top ("Well, I was helping you when you got slammed.").

I've worked in eight different bars/restaurants since 1996, and it's always been that way at every stop. Personally hand the server the tip so that it's never factored into any tip-share equation.
I nearly always leave the tip in cash, usually on the table for the server to pick it up. The only time i didn't in the past year was because I was out of cash and had to use my card.

I've heard too many stories of managers pilfering the tips.
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Ag_of_08
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jimbo457 said:

I did my time in the service industry and as a result, I consider myself a decent tipper. I am bothered by a couple of things however that I've seen shift towards in recent years.

Of course, the constant requests for tips by someone that is simply taking your money and handing you food is problematic as most have said here but is anyone else bothered by the fact that the expectation has gone from 15% to 18, 20, 22% as seen on most restaurant receipts? The 15% option generally isn't even precalculated anymore. I am also pretty wound up anytime a tip is automatically added to my bill, and then there's the line for adding more tip. You have to be careful because you could be tricked into double tipping.


Got hit with that in Austin not long ago... did not come through until the end gratuity at 20% had been included, I had already left a reasonable tip.
Deputy Travis Junior
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I went to a self-serve, weigh and pay yogurt joint on Friday and it had an option to leave a tip. Why the hell would I tip if I'm doing everything myself?
Brother Shamus
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peacedude said:

IMPORTANT: Do NOT leave tips on cards!!! Leave cash (within a handshake) for your server/bartender.

There are a sh*tload of crappy servers that rely on the hard work of other servers in order to earn their tip-share. It's glorified socialism: "Your money is my money." Additionally, the manager will almost always (nearly 100% of the time) reduce your server's paycheck in order to skim off the top ("Well, I was helping you when you got slammed.").

I've worked in eight different bars/restaurants since 1996, and it's always been that way at every stop. Personally hand the server the tip so that it's never factored into any tip-share equation.


Sorry, I don't have time to think about this. That's your problem.
 
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