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Is tipping getting out of control? Many consumers say yes

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Re: Is tipping getting out of control? Many consumers say yes

#251

Post by godelski »

kylehotchkiss wrote: post #173
godelski wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

We don't have to outlaw it but we should do something more difficult: make it not the social norm.

I went to a religious university and there was a certain ethics class everybody was required to take. A discussion topic one day was about how to advertise you were a member of this faith while out and about, and the topic of tipping came up. The lecture pretty much worked out like you should be tipping big! People don't treat waiters so well after the religious service ends! At least 20% to share the good news:tm: w…

I'm just ambivalent about making it illegal and prefer to not make things illegal. But I think your story supports the bribery aspect that I'm bringing up. That definitely isn't right.

Re: Is tipping getting out of control? Many consumers say yes

#252

Post by tjpnz »

peterhadlaw wrote: post #232
jacktribe wrote: post #99

I've just opened a coffee shop in Los Angeles last month, and we don't take tips. We only use self-ordering iPads (I've custom coded an iOS app w/ Stripe Terminal for it), and we don't accept cash either. We've had a few customers baffled by the no-tipping policy, and still insisting that they leave a tip. Some even left cash on the counter or on the table. We had to chase a few of them down to return their money. Al…

Please accept cash. We don't need to encourage credit card companies to track our purchases and give them the tools to control who can and cannot do business.

Why would a credit card company do that?

Re: Is tipping getting out of control? Many consumers say yes

#253

Post by dumpsterdiver »

jacktribe wrote: post #99

I've just opened a coffee shop in Los Angeles last month, and we don't take tips. We only use self-ordering iPads (I've custom coded an iOS app w/ Stripe Terminal for it), and we don't accept cash either. We've had a few customers baffled by the no-tipping policy, and still insisting that they leave a tip. Some even left cash on the counter or on the table. We had to chase a few of them down to return their money. Al…

> Also, some customers seem to think that the screen froze at the very end because it didn't ask for a tip.

Haha, I think that's totally reasonable of them. As a consumer I would appreciate a notification informing me that I couldn't tip, no matter how much I thought they deserved it.

Edit: I wanted to add that there are a lot of places we're not expected to tip at whose employees deserve it just as much as the ones working at the places we are expected to tip at. Tipping culture may be out of control, but a lot of times people deserve a tip for providing exceptional service. That's our way of validating them and saying, "you're going to make it."

Re: Is tipping getting out of control? Many consumers say yes

#254

Post by rr808 »

DrThunder wrote: post #122
tkuraku wrote: post #38

I think tipping should be outlawed. The price should be the price. Workers should not be subject to inconsistent pay for the same amount of work. In addition it gets rid of any bias in wages (more attractive people or people of different ethnicities might get higher tips for the same work).

I don't. For sit down restaurants, or many service oriented jobs it makes for a better customer experience. I agree for counter service it where they want tips BEFORE the service experience it makes no sense. You ought to try sitting down in a restaurant in the EU. They do the bare minimum to serve you. Tying a possible bonus to the way you act in customer service facing role has a lot of benefits. "In addition it ge…

I disagree, I prefer the service in EU - I like the bare minimum. I hate in the US when they take your order as soon as you arrive, they check every 5 minutes if you're OK then whip away your plates as soon as you finish the last mouthful.

Re: Is tipping getting out of control? Many consumers say yes

#256

Post by yawnxyz »

Jedd wrote: post #113

One Australian's anecdata follows. I hate tipping. It's an unwanted cognitive intrusion with no upside for me whatsoever. It also reflects a broken (wage / reward) system, and obviously my preference is they fix that . In Australia I may tip - iff the service is really good. And only at sit-down / eat-in restaurants. Cafes, cabs, ubers, couriers, hotels, etc - these are not tipping places. If I'm tipping at a restaur…

I'm always put off by a server hearing my American accent and insisting / guilt-tripping that I add a tip, thinking I'm a tourist in Sydney...

Yes I do tip sometimes, but only if the service has been fun / great. So off-putting when a place tries to squeeze a tip if they think you don't live here.

Re: Is tipping getting out of control? Many consumers say yes

#257

Post by rr808 »

zzzeek wrote: post #71

I can't believe these comments, what is wrong with you people? if you are a highly paid technology worker, when you go to service establishments where people are working hourly and are desperate to work 40-50 hour weeks just to pay their rent and feed their kids, you *tip*. *generously*. the US has an insanely out of control income inequality issue that is very intractible and structural. If you are so fortunate as t…

Agreed the inequality is a problem. However making people who serve wealthy people the highest paid is a bad solution.

Re: Is tipping getting out of control? Many consumers say yes

#258

Post by godelski »

BirAdam wrote: post #231
godelski wrote: post #30

One thing I've never understood is the argument for tipping. It has always been "because servers are being paid less than minimum wage." Which the issue with that is that that varies state by state. Most west coast states do not have a separate tipped wage[0]. So the question is, why do we tip at all on the west coast[1]? Worse, it seems to be expanding and increasing in size[2] The followup argument is often "well t…

Not saying it’s good or bad, but I used to know some people who made 6 figures a year on tips straight out of high school and stayed in the food business because of it. I never did… I’m not a particularly friendly or warm person. But, those people do actively defend tipping and they expressly do not want salary/wage systems.

I'm not advocating for the abolishment of tipping (I explicitly stated this btw), but I am against its expansion and an economic system where bribery is required for an employee to take home a living wage. If we had a social standard where everyone was making at least a living wage then I have no problems with you wanting to depart with extra cash. No one here is really advocating for making tipping illegal, we just don't think it should be used to supplement income.

Re: Is tipping getting out of control? Many consumers say yes

#259

Post by blahblah1234567 »

fishtoaster wrote: post #48

I quite dislike the tip system, but feel I have no good way to protest it. I could "just not tip," but that mostly harms the people who have the least power in the situation (the waiter) rather than the people who can change it (management). Instead, I feel like the only ethical option available to me is to preferentially frequent no-tip restaurants. Unfortunately there aren't too many of those and although I hate th…

I think tipping waiters in restaurants, at the end of a meal is fine.

It's the request for a tip at practically every cafe or donut shop, where a person is simply pouring drip coffee or placing an item in a bag, for to-go/carry out, which gets to me. Or the expectation to tip for a re-fill of a coffee mug, at a cafe. It's not service-- it's dispensing a product.

I am starting to wonder how much baristas make, for example, if it's $10-$15 per hour, plus 15 customers per hour (x$1-$2 tip each)... that's potentially $50-60k+ per year. Which is more than many teachers and healthcare workers make-- people with degrees, training, and who provide a skilled, emotionally-involved service.

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