Does anyone still tip waiters/waitresses?

[darkredwing]

As people have already said, the paychecks for the wait staff is incredibly tiny, most often below whatever minimum wage is. The wait staff isn't just the waiter either, it includes the hostess and bussers as well and of course the bar tender if you sit in the bar. On top of that here in America the wait staff is actually taxed based off of a certain percent because it is assumed they will get tipped, when they don't get tipped, it makes that tiny paycheck feel even smaller. Because of that tax it is why anyone that makes minimum wage or more usually cannot accept tips. I did anyways when I worked at my local grocery store, just took care not to get caught ha.

If you don't want to tip people serving you your food, don't go to restaurants simple as that. Having said that however, I generally do not tip for bad or poor service, if I never see the waiter again after getting my food they aren't getting a tip. If they're extremely rude and impolite, no tip. I don't expect everyone to be chipper and the best waiter in the world, but I do expect decent polite service.

 

[Esper]

I thought it was annoying to tip when I was younger because I didn't really eat out and didn't have much money of my own so I wasn't used to the idea (and until quite recently I didn't even know it was normal to tip your hairdresser - oops.) But now it's just part of what you should expect when you go to a restaurant. If you don't like it, don't go to the restaurant or go and risk having people think poorly of you, but don't blame the servers.

 

[Sydian]

If people want a good job, they'll get one. I don't know of servers (thank God I don't know one) who dream of being servers, so that won't be a hard decision to quit. If I was a waiter, I'd quit and get a real job.

You do realize that a lot of servers are probably in high school or college, right? They're working these jobs til they've finished their education so that they can get those "real" jobs. Being a server is definitely a real job, though. Putting up with terrible customers is some tough ****, or large groups of people. We do a lot more than just take your order and bring food out to you. Besides, if you don't consider it a real job, imagine if there weren't servers. Have fun ordering your own food and bringing it out to yourself when you're somewhere that you should be relaxing and having a good time, not doing work. Just a thought.

Anyway, I almost always tip. Unless my service was just terrible, then I always tip. I get onto my mom or whoever I'm with if they don't put something down, and I'll usually slap at least $2-3 on the table if that's the case. I'm a server at a country club, so thankfully tips are included in their ticket already. Though sometimes, people will actually tip you cash. Got a $26 tip on Father's Day for working a huge party so that was pretty nice! :)

 

[Kanzler]

Tipping cash is really fun. It kinda feels like a behind-the-back kind of transaction ;) I always thought tipping was around 15%, is how we do over here, but I always overestimate and give something closer to 20%. Good thing I don't eat out often anyways.

 

[Sylphiel]

I tip. Or rather, my husband does, since he's the one to pay for things whenever we go out eating. <_< But basically, we do tip. Mostly because it is customary around here, and also...well, if the server's done a good job, we don't mind paying that little bit extra for what they've done for us. Just seems like the polite thing to do, really.

(Thankfully we haven't run into a situation where we feel like we need to tip less for bad service...yet.)

 

[Pumpkaboo]

Here in England our minimum wage is lower than that of the US and we still don't have the customary of tipping. So no, I never tip, in fact it's even considered "touristy" or "pretentious" (as in you're showing off how much money you have) to tip at times. The only places you would need to tip would be 3-5 star restaurants because they expect you to have the money to throw around, and I can assure you those servers are not on minimum wage.

I personally dislike having to tip people, but that's because of the different culture I've been born and raised in. The only times I've ever had to tip would be when I was abroad. I'm paying for my food/drink, it shouldn't be at my expense because the employer isn't paying you a decent enough wage, I pay enough in taxes. Say what you will about me.

 

[Nihilego]

Living in England, I'm always amazed at how customary it is in America to leave a tip and I never realised that it was even legal, much less commonplace, to pay someone below minimum wage such that they need tips to support themselves. That's really messed up. @__@ So yeah I guess if I was in the states I'd be more inclined to tip.

Tips are quite common among certain groups of people in certain places here but not required as a rule or anything like that and they also aren't intended to make up someone's wage. I very rarely go out to eat since I don't have that kind of money and therefore save meals out for special occasions and when I do, I don't tip and I've never seen one of my friends who I'm eating with tip. Given some of the other responses in this thread I'm probably about to get lynched for saying this but I don't feel like I need to boost someone's salary for them doing their job. I don't tip cashiers, bus drivers, cafe workers, or anyone else providing a service - and most of the time (minus the bus drivers, haha) these people are all perfectly pleasant and polite and helpful and whatnot so I don't see why tipping waiters specifically is such a big thing.

 

[Legobricks]

If they have a problem with their pay, making it mine won't solve it. Instead, form a union, be proactive. Apologies if I come across as commanding, but I think most of why this is still a concern is that people thoughtlessly accept it as tradition.

 

[T The Manager]

If people want a good job, they'll get one. I don't know of servers (thank God I don't know one) who dream of being servers, so that won't be a hard decision to quit. If I was a waiter, I'd quit and get a real job.

You seem to not fully understand the job market in America today or you don't understand a damn thing about America's economy. Most servers are lucky to even have the job they have because finding any job anywhere in America is extremely difficult. Do you have a job yourself? If so, you should understand the difficulty of finding one and having the courtesy and respect to leave them a small tip because they rely on it.

Another thing that you don't seem to understand is, some servers stack mad bread being employed below min wage. If the restaurant is fancy with $30 meals a person then the server is walking out with a $20 tip every time a family comes in to eat. One of my friends, she made close to $400 in just 6 days AND she's part-time and the restaurant isn't that fancy, just busy. I'd say that is damn good for a server. It's funny how it works isn't it? If your good and fast at it, you'll get more, it's that simple.

 

[Sector]

I do tip. The thing is, when I'm eating with my friends, they tend to tip $5-10 everytime we go to Ruby Tuesday or Olive Garden, so I don't usually tip when I'm with them, plus I don't go to those alone, so yeah. I think that is a fair amount to leave behind. I actually only tip when I go to Subway, because that's the only restaurant I really, truly love in general. When I order something, it usually cost $6-7 for my Sub, so I'll hand the employer a $10, & whatever change I get back, 98% of the time I'll put the change in the jar they have for the tippers to leave for them. If I had some extra coins, which I usually do when I leave stores like Walmart/The Mall, etc, I'll bring those in just to tip them a bit more. Its more of a 50/50 thing for me with using cash vs card. If I'm using a card, I'll just pull out $2-$3 out of my pocket before I head out the door to tip them, which I feel is less tipping than using cash.

Sometimes I might need the extra money for some other things, for the other 2% of the time, so that's the only time I actually don't tip. I'm a regular at the Subway I go to, so they love me anyway. ^_^

Oh yeah. If there's a waitress or waiter one of us finds really attractive/sexy/hot, we don't really hesitate to tip them $20!

 

[Meganium]

I always tip them. Always always. They work so hard to make sure we are having a pleasant time in their restaurant as well as giving us excellent service. There's no excuse for me whatsoever on why I shouldn't tip them.

 

[Dakotah]

Yes I always tip. The thing is, I'm a giving individual, even when I don't have much myself. On a whim, I'll even drop a few twoonies in the hat of someone on the street. Not because I feel sorry for the person, but because I wasn't raised to be a selfish person. I was raised to always share. Some people aren't like that, they hold everything they earn real close to their chest. And that is fine, and certainly it is their right. But the optics of it can really affect a person's standing in society. Word quickly gets around about individuals who refuse to tip, and usually those people will end up only ever receiving the bare minimum of service required. People who tip, and who are known to tip, will always receive the best possible service they can provide. Always. Non-tippers also often will be regarded negatively by the people around them. So if people don't want to be treated like jerks, then the simplest solution is to quit acting like one.

 

[Treecko]

I'm new here, and so far, I hate it here. I'm still never going to tip. There has never been a waiter/waitress worthy of my money, in my opinion.

You hate the forum now because people disagree with your opinion? Well let me just say, you're on the Internet, thousands of people will disagree with you at one point no matter where you go. With you don't want people to disagree with you, then get off the Internet. Though people are gonna disagree with you in real life too so maybe you probably won't like real life either.

Anyway, I always tip as much as I can. I know what it's like to not have a lot of money and can sympathize with waiters/waitresses who don't make a lot money either. Those tips are pretty much their paycheck and helps them get by. It also shows how much I appreciate the hard work they do. They bust their butts at their job to make every customer happy and sometimes not everyone is satisfied with their work and that money shows to them that they made someone happy that day. Though sometimes if I'm with a bunch of friend, they usually pay put down enough money for tips and more, so I don't have to worry about spending as much on tip. Or I'm with my dad and he pays for all of our tips. I still try to chip in as much as I can, cause that's just common courtesy.

 

[Towerizer]

I under stand that waiting staff only make like $2 an hour but i'd rather pay more for the food than have to tip them. i do have exceptions though, i will always tip the pizza guy cause he has to pay for gas and what not, and i'll tip small hole in the wall places ( like the mexican food place down the road) because they are usually like 2 or 3 people runnign the place and i feel they deserve it.

 

[Beyond Infinity]

Here in England our minimum wage is lower than that of the US and we still don't have the customary of tipping. So no, I never tip, in fact it's even considered "touristy" or "pretentious" (as in you're showing off how much money you have) to tip at times. The only places you would need to tip would be 3-5 star restaurants because they expect you to have the money to throw around, and I can assure you those servers are not on minimum wage.

Minimum wage in the UK, if you're over 21, is something like £6 an hour, no? Which is about three times more than a $3 wage.

If they have a problem with their pay, making it mine won't solve it. Instead, form a union, be proactive. Apologies if I come across as commanding, but I think most of why this is still a concern is that people thoughtlessly accept it as tradition.

In most businesses, this is what happens. If you're paid below the minimum wage, not only is it illegal here, but you attempt to raise it.

A tip, in my eyes, is a reward for doing well. It shouldn't have to cover the tiny wages of staff. Our waiters work of the same minimum wage as everyone, they don't get a special low one.

 

[Ivysaur]

I under stand that waiting staff only make like $2 an hour but i'd rather pay more for the food than have to tip them. i do have exceptions though, i will always tip the pizza guy cause he has to pay for gas and what not, and i'll tip small hole in the wall places ( like the mexican food place down the road) because they are usually like 2 or 3 people runnign the place and i feel they deserve it.

This. Pretty much. I find it specially cruel to keep the workers in underwater wages to be able to mark your dishes cheaper and then expect the customers to pay more than that so the workers can have real salaries. I'm kind of glad that in Europe we are used to having real prices and not needing tips, so they can be used as a reward and not as a hidden tax you have to mentally add to know how expensive your dinner is actually going to be.

You know, I happily tip the guy in the newsstand I go to every morning who knows me by my first name and has my newspaper waiting for me as soon as he sees me walking down the street, but a regular waiter who does nothing out of the ordinary other than serving me my food? They should be giving a decent, worthy pay, but that's it. A shame things aren't that straightforward in the US :(

 

[T The Manager]

^ and to add onto that, they gotta split the tip. That's if there was more than one individual involved with your table.

I don't understand half the crap in America either. Only in America will you get paid a couple bucks and on top with a few coins an hour for being a server. The genius who thought this was a good idea needs to get *****ed slapped cause what if the restaurant isn't that busy or they get very few tables? How are they suppose to pay or support anything? Employers wont bump their pay and customers wont fatten their pockets so their basically screwed out the gate. But for the most part, they usually do make it up. I think it's wrong for employers to do this and I think forcing them to work below min wage server or not should be illegal. Bump their pay to min wage and let others decide if they wanna tip for good service or not. Personally, I'd still tip a few bucks for the kindness and checking up to make sure everything is going well.

 

[Cordelia]

I always tip, even if the server was quite terrible. Usually I tip low around 10% when that happens but otherwise I always tip 20% or over. I'm pretty easy to please though but it's nice to have good, friendly service. :)

 

[TY]

I never tipped myself since i never went out to a restaurant on my own, but i think its respectable to tip. Last time i went on holidays to France, my dad tipped too, cause they just are friendly while having to hear whatever you order plus whenever you want to order some drinks.

 

[Xander Olivieri]

My family tips when we eat out. I have friends that work for tips, so even now I tip when I eat out, sometimes ontop of what my family tips. Its not an easy job and a lot of the people who go to eat at places that require tips to make a majority of your money look down on the service and tend to treat them like they are less than human.

I make it a point to tip for other people I see being unreasonable with their servers as well. The workers are there because they could find nothing else. Why should we make their hard lives harder by being pricks to them?

Its also not just restaurants; Cafe's, bars, bus, Taxi, and other tourist attracting areas require tips for a majority of that individual's pay. This isn't the same as a street performer who chooses to do what they love to do to make money.

No you don't have to tip if you don't feel like it as it is your right not to and the tips are not mandatory everywhere (Yes there are places where tips are mandatory). It is a common courtesy to do so though. Even if you don't do the minimum 20%.