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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

#971

Post by kjellsbells »

TylerE wrote: post #616
kjellsbells wrote: post #510

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As a consumer of both Square and Clover, I wonder if I am alone in finding the latter ridiculously clunky. I want to pay quickly, get a receipt texted or emailed or printed and move on. After I enter my details (eg phone number) once, I should not need to do it again at another merchant. Square gets this. Clover seems not to, and is forever trying to get me to install its dumpy little app to harvest my data in exchan…

How do you expect it to remember anything without “harvesting” data?

I wasnt very clear, sorry. I expect the payment terminal backend to match my credit card ID to the phone number I input at the terminal when I elect to have the receipt texted to me. After that, I do not expect to have to supply any more data (eg at a second merchant using Square).

Clover seems to have trouble with this, and their solution appears to be to lean on me to install their app and use it to check in at stores to get some discount, in exchange for knowing data like my date of birth.

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

#972

Post by spopejoy »

dmazin wrote: post #884
canibal57 wrote: post #883

So we're stopping the gratuitous kindness of strangers towards lower income workers so some other people don't "feel bad" now?

Seriously! Why is this a story?

LOL look at where the "contrarian" views are here: voted to the bottom after 30 "I hate tipping too!" "It's irrational" "No really in MY ideal technocracy you just wouldn't need tipping!"

Even some of the "contrarian" views are incredibly timid. "I say allow me to offer a different viewpoint because I wouldn't dare condemn your extremely rational stance kind sir!"

Fact is, any chance you can take as an overpaid software dev you should tip to pay your debt to society. While you're at it, give some cash to beggars too. "Effective altruism" doesn't cut it.

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

#973

Post by hoorible »

cudgy wrote: post #866
orev wrote: post #807

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Adding a tip for large parties has been a common practice for decades—long before the current trend of adding tips for everything. Whether you agree with the idea of tips or not, that’s the system we have, and in that system large parties very often take up far more resources at a restaurant than smaller ones. They take more time to leave, they clog up the kitchen (as all dishes need to come out at the same time), th…

I’m not buying this overall. Large groups typically order more alcoholic drinks while they are spending more time, which is hugely profitable for restaurants. Also, the more waiters argument doesn’t hold when there are more people/tables. I agree that bringing out more food at the same time is more effort, but this is not insurmountable. It’s basically a grift to get more money from the suckling pigs of wedding parti…

Sounds like you’ve never waited tables!

Two-tops are the best for earnings, both for the restaurant and the server. Easier for a charismatic career server to separately charm three couples on dates than a single table of six all at once. And higher turnover is better for revenue. 1-on-1 business meeting? They’ve got work to do. Couples on dates? They’ve got fucking to do. Smaller parties -> faster turnover -> more money.

Large parties are worse in every way. Special table arrangements for reservations made in advance mean more seats left empty while waiting for the arrival. People at large gatherings will buy less food/drink just as often as they’ll buy more. Sometimes it’s a work party where everything is expensed; cool! But lots of companies don’t cover alcohol expenses, which is your most profitable item. Just as often it’s a going away party for a bunch of retail workers where everyone nurses one drink for two hours and splits 3 appies across the whole table.

Large parties suck. Some servers prefer them, but those people are heroes (and rare). Minimum 18% for large parties is standard where I am, but if it was my call it would be 30.

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

#974

Post by panda88888 »

blahblah1234567 wrote: post #259
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 exa…

The logical conclusion is that we should tip the teachers daily based on how little Johnny felt the educational experience was for the day /s

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

#975

Post by panda88888 »

blahedo wrote: post #615

Important to add: in fields where tipping is standard (notably, restaurant waitstaff), in many areas of the US the minimum wage is much much lower. Nationally, $2.13/hour. That pays their taxes... For all intents and purposes, restaurant and bar staff are gig workers that are working for a variable rate determined entirely at the customers' discretion. If you don't tip them, they're essentially working for free, or r…

In CA it is not. But it doesn’t stop this 25%+ tip minimum for normal service advice.

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

#976

Post by tekknik »

8note wrote: post #460
Larrikin wrote: post #375

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Cities are making it illegal, as they should. It's not always meant in bad faith, but it's also a form of gentrification that hurts the poor and unbanked by removing yet another service from them. https://www.nssh.com/2020/04/philadelphias-ban-on-cashless-s... I personally never use anything but cards since I have many of the high reward credit cards. But I've also had family members with tax liens or other problems…

> that didn't allow them to get a bank account This sounds like the real problem to solve. It's unacceptable for people to be unable to get a bank account and whatever cards to pay cashless

It’s very hard to get denied a checking account, even with walking away from multiple accounts with negative balances. I’d bet they didn’t try hard enough or this is a lie.

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

#977

Post by AussieWog93 »

csomar wrote: post #281
dang wrote: post #216

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You should write a longer piece about your coffee shop! and the process behind it. If you do, you should submit it to HN - and if you do that you should email us (hn@ycombinator.com) because we might put it in the second-chance pool ( https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=26998308 ).

I wonder if all these laid off engineers will end up opening small businesses and using their skill to cut one or two employees. Maybe we'll finally get a push toward real automation.

For what it's worth, that's what I've done. Pays much, much better than SWE ever did.

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

#978

Post by tomcam »

tomcam wrote: post #657
peteforde wrote: post #518

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I had to read this a few times to make sure that, yes, you are actually implying that service in Canada is somehow particularly great. I've lived here all of my life, but traveled very extensively. I would give the typical Canadian service interaction a neutral pass; they aren't openly rude, nor are they offering to wash my car. Where are you going to eat that someone taking your order, bringing it to you and checkin…

I find the service in Victoria to be top notch. And tons of gorgeous waitresses, not that I care because I’m a highly evolved man ;)

Downvoted, appropriately

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

#979

Post by jonathanstrange »

itwontbelik wrote: post #788
jonathanstrange wrote: post #779

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sorry, I've lived my whole life in Europe in three different countries and have never been to a café where you can't pay in cash and don't tip. Tipping works differently, e.g. in my current country of residence you leave cash on the table, but unless your bill is very low (say, below 5 EUR) not tipping is still a bit rude. There used to be no tipping at all but with the increase in tourism that's no longer the norm.

> There used to be no tipping at all but with the increase in tourism that's no longer the norm. I take this as local employees stating their entitlement to nickel and dime tourists as much as possible. :(

What? No, not at all! The tourists insist on tipping, not the employees.
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