The tipping point

Observations on life 8 comments

For the record, I strongly disagree with the views shown in the survey below. In the last several years I have been over tipping – 25% or more.

Look closely at your servers.

Many are elderly, some quite young, others seem to be just struggling to get through the day. I strike up a short conversation to know them a little. Recently a woman told me she took two busses the get to work. Another who worked a late shift was afraid to take a bus, had no car so had to use Uber at night which cost he what she earned for a couple of hours or more.

It would have to be extremely poor service on the part of the server for me not to even give a modest tip. Kitchen problems, food quality problems are not their fault.

Tipping is an important part of their compensation and doing away with it just means higher menu prices.

The way I look at it, if you can afford to go out to eat you should be able to tip fairly.

They rarely tip in Europe, but they add a service charge and when it comes to just coffee, you sometimes pay extra to sit.

Nearly 3 in 4 Americans think tipping is out of control, according to WalletHub’s Tipping Survey, released today. The survey asked about a variety of topics, such as when people believe they should have to tip, whether they feel pressured to do so, and how they think gratuities should be split.

Below, you can find some highlights from the survey, as well as a Q&A with WalletHub Analyst Cassandra Happe.

Key Stats

  • Enough is enough: Nearly 3 in 4 Americans think tipping has gotten out of control.
     
  • Necessity or bonus: 64% of people think a tip is something you should give when you feel like it instead of something you always have to give.
     
  • Employer crowdfunding: Nearly 3 in 5 Americans think businesses are replacing employee salaries with customer tips.
     
  • Suggestion screen penalty: More than 1 in 4 Americans tip less when they’re presented with a tip suggestion screen.
     
  • Automatic annoyance: 78% of people think automatic service charges should be banned.
     
  • Pressure to tip: Half of Americans say they often leave a tip due to social pressure rather than good service.

For the full survey, please visit:
https://wallethub.com/blog/tipping-survey/135092

8 comments

  1. Dick I disagree … I don’t understand what is ‘giving back’ whether service is excellent or poor … are you saying “oh, your service was poor, I waited 30 minutes to be give you my order as you joked with your peers, I couldn’t get your attention to get the bill so I waited another 10 minutes … so here is 15-20% KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK! Also what is this tipping as a percent of the food bill including tax? So I have a dinner at an upscale restaurant for $100, service was terrible yet I get a tip placed on by the establishment of 20% – what? Yet at a diner, I have a breakfast for $20 served by a attentive, pleasant service that made the experience wonderful … do I only tip her $4.00? No. Tip is based on the service provided.

    Maybe the best way to handle this is to have the menu pricing include the tip as part of the meal cost. Then as one pays for the meal you can decide (from above assuming 20%) Was this meal worth $120 or $24 … and vote with your legs – come back or not

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    1. I said “It would have to be extremely poor service on the part of the server for me not to even give a modest tip.” I think you illustrated extremely poor service.

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  3. I don’t have an answer to all the gripes in the survey but I frequent a couple of spots where I order at the counter, the counter person hands me a cup and doughnut, bagel, or whatever. The pay screen has a long list of amounts to tip. Since I bus my own table I don’t feel an obligation to tip. Recently I bought a new mattress and when we agreed on a price the salesman says delivery and setup included with old bedding removed. Within an hour after the delivery I received a text with a link to where I could tip the mattress delivery guys. Since I negotiated a price beforehand I didn’t feel any obligation to tip. So I can see where everyone is asking for a tip. That bugs me because tipping or an expectation of a tip didn’t used to be universal.

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    1. First time I have ever agreed with James. I have lived overseas quite a bit of my life and love not having the constant friction and uncertainty of if and how much I should tip. And when I do tip overseas, it is a genuine surprised and really appreciated, unlike the U.S. I certainly tip servers in states where their wage is based on tips, but there is a special place in hell for those tipping screens at takeout.

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