I worked in food service, and have worked in customer service, for years.

Both the UK and AU where I currently live have minimum wages.

I have never tipped anyone for anything, and never will. I wouldn't even do so in a country where it is "required" like the US. If I find a "tip charge" added to my bill I will kick up an almighty stink.

Everyone should be paid a fair wage for their work, nobody should recieve tips, commision or any other extras for doing what is their job to do. Flat, hourly, rates for eveyrone who comes to work and does their job.

Edit : By supporting a tipping culture, you support people not being paid fairly and equally for their work.

Best case scenario, tips go into a jar, everyone gets equal pay... might as well simply raise their pay.

More likely scenario.... people who are more appealing, get better pay. Someone simply having a bad day ahs this compounded by the fact that they get less money. Someone who is simply unlucky because there is bad traffic outside meaning fewer customers come in on his shift, get paid less.

Matthew94:

DevilWithaHalo:

Matthew94:
I'm pretty sure I've seen people post a few times that these laws are in place at the federal level so workplaces have to pay them minimum wage by law if tips do not cover it.

Corrected, we don't play our employees. ;)

You are correct though. Federal law requires employers make up the loss if tips do not cover at least Federal minimum wage. But there in lies (one of) the problem; employers are asking customers to directly cover the costs of their employees. Why not simply factor it into the costs? (Although some people would bock at the increase in pricing)

Grammar nazi eh?

It's spelled baulk not bock.

"there in lies (one of) the problem"

That should be plural, it should be problems.

You started it...

Actually, the phrase is "therein lies the problem". It's originally singular, but even if Devil specified that it's only "(one of)" the problems, he's still right. So chill out, he's not attacking you personally.

Anyways, on topic, I wouldn't stop tipping them if they made well over minimum wage. It's just a common courtesy, I don't get why people feel so strongly about not tipping.

I only tip waitresses

not for minimum wage, servers still put up with way too much and do way too much to get that little. at around 10-12 dollars an hour, i wouldn't tip as much, and it would be based on service, not just principle.

As a former waiter I feel sorry for those in America. Not knowing if your going to get paid enough to pay your bills and feed your kids. Its a ridiculous system.

The only people who benefit from a tip culture are the higher ups who can pay ridiculously low wages for a full days work.

I wouldn't stop. My sister is a waitress at Cheddar's and most of the people she has to put up with are complete douchebags. She works really hard, and is usually stressed out, so I think tipping waiters/waitresses is a good thing to do, no matter if they make minimum wage or not.

I still would if the service was very good. See I saw tipping as a way of rewarding and by extension encouraging waiters acting well. A pleasant waiter can do wonders for the evening.

Rawne1980:
I don't tip.

Granted we have a minimum wage in the UK but still .... they carried my food from the kitchen to my table, how the fuck is that worth a tip *well done, you can put one foot infront of the other while carrying a plate ... who's a special little one, here have some money for a lolly".

The job isn't really that simple. You need to be constantly monitoring what is going on. You need to keep a record of every person who is in the cafe, what they ordered, when they ordered, how long they have waited, when they get their meals, when they finish eating, what special needs might come up before, during, and after their meal. You need to be able to understand when a problem might occur and fix it before it becomes a problem, eg if a meal docket has somehow been lost. You need to be able to effectively communicate to the kitchen what a customer wants and requires if it isn't just straight off the menu, and you sometimes need to persuade the kitchen staff to do what the customer wants/needs like a lunch at 4:30pm or breakfast after 11:30am when its quiet. You need to manage table bookings and people waiting for tables to be available, you need to make it work when a booking for 2 decides to show up with 7 people on your busiest day of the year ;/.

You have to let rude and unreasonably nasty behaviour from customers role off your back and not effect you, this can be hard when you are young and have some big bully screaming down on your head because his medium rare steak wasn't 100 degrees celcius in the middle, or some lecherous disgusting prick decides to grab your bum when you are 17 and working alone, but you can't show a sad face to another customer because it really isn't their buisness to care what is going on for you it is your job to always be smiling and happy, and make them happy too, no matter what is going on at work or in your personal life.

All of these things become harder when it is more busy, but it isn't just e-z abc 123 to get a good flow of everything happening correctly, and keeping every customer happy. You need to be able to read the expectations of each customer and meet them to the best of your ability, even when the customer doesn't tell you anything and just expects you to be psychic. You even have to explain to people why the people who ordered before them got their meals first.

People get extremely angry over tiny things, or just simple mistakes and it can be really hard to make them happy again. Like saying "Are you guys ready to order?" can be seen as extremely rude from some customers because the use of the word "guys" offends them. You even get people being really offended because you call a long black a long black and a flat white a flat white because they see that as racist.
But it can also be fairly rewarding to make a person who comes in grumpy and angry leave happy and smiling.

For you, you are perhaps one of those easy customers that comes in, orders off the menu, and expects nothing more than a smile and politeness. Some people need to tell you all their problems, or just like to have a nice chat about various things, some people are really picky about what they like to eat, or have allergies/dietary requirements. Some people are on really short time frames and need something to come asap. Some people need to be spoken to or treated in a certain way to keep them happy. While none of this is the hardest stuff in the world it still isn't the easiest. Managing people can be difficult, managing the flow and order and the way and order everything needs to come out is not e-z p-z anybody can do it durr!! It normally takes 2years to train someone to be up to speed and able to handle everything that needs to be handled, and even after that people can still make mistakes, and some people will never get or understand what is required.

But anyway in my country waiting staff are paid a normal wage and tips are not needed, the expense of the food factors in the cost of the service, so you need to make the cost worth while by giving good service and it is just your job and what you are paid to do. I earn enouph to support myself through uni(this wouldn't be possible without saturday and sunday penalty rates though, which they want to cut here :( ), I don't need tips but they are nice to get. At the place I work we just split them up when each staff member will get $50, mostly it's just small change we get but sometimes you get crazy tips from people, I remember once getting a $27 tip for a $23 meal. I don't really ever tip myself, I'm a broke student who can't really afford to go out for anything besides coffee ;/, but it isn't actually needed here anyway, it's just a nice extra.

Maniclings:

Rawne1980:
I don't tip.

Granted we have a minimum wage in the UK but still .... they carried my food from the kitchen to my table, how the fuck is that worth a tip *well done, you can put one foot infront of the other while carrying a plate ... who's a special little one, here have some money for a lolly".

The job isn't really that simple. You need to be constantly monitoring what is going on. You need to keep a record of every person who is in the cafe, what they ordered, when they ordered, how long they have waited, when they get their meals, when they finish eating, what special needs might come up before, during, and after their meal. You need to be able to understand when a problem might occur and fix it before it becomes a problem, eg if a meal docket has somehow been lost. You need to be able to effectively communicate to the kitchen what a customer wants and requires if it isn't just straight off the menu, and you sometimes need to persuade the kitchen staff to do what the customer wants/needs like a lunch at 4:30pm or breakfast after 11:30am when its quiet. You need to manage table bookings and people waiting for tables to be available, you need to make it work when a booking for 2 decides to show up with 7 people on your busiest day of the year ;/.

You have to let rude and unreasonably nasty behaviour from customers role off your back and not effect you, this can be hard when you are young and have some big bully screaming down on your head because his medium rare steak wasn't 100 degrees celcius in the middle, or some lecherous disgusting prick decides to grab your bum when you are 17 and working alone, but you can't show a sad face to another customer because it really isn't their buisness to care what is going on for you it is your job to always be smiling and happy, and make them happy too, no matter what is going on at work or in your personal life.

All of these things become harder when it is more busy, but it isn't just e-z abc 123 to get a good flow of everything happening correctly, and keeping every customer happy. You need to be able to read the expectations of each customer and meet them to the best of your ability, even when the customer doesn't tell you anything and just expects you to be psychic. You even have to explain to people why the people who ordered before them got their meals first.

People get extremely angry over tiny things, or just simple mistakes and it can be really hard to make them happy again. Like saying "Are you guys ready to order?" can be seen as extremely rude from some customers because the use of the word "guys" offends them. You even get people being really offended because you call a long black a long black and a flat white a flat white because they see that as racist.
But it can also be fairly rewarding to make a person who comes in grumpy and angry leave happy and smiling.

For you, you are perhaps one of those easy customers that comes in, orders off the menu, and expects nothing more than a smile and politeness. Some people need to tell you all their problems, or just like to have a nice chat about various things, some people are really picky about what they like to eat, or have allergies/dietary requirements. Some people are on really short time frames and need something to come asap. Some people need to be spoken to or treated in a certain way to keep them happy. While none of this is the hardest stuff in the world it still isn't the easiest. Managing people can be difficult, managing the flow and order and the way and order everything needs to come out is not e-z p-z anybody can do it durr!! It normally takes 2years to train someone to be up to speed and able to handle everything that needs to be handled, and even after that people can still make mistakes, and some people will never get or understand what is required.

But anyway in my country waiting staff are paid a normal wage and tips are not needed, the expense of the food factors in the cost of the service, so you need to make the cost worth while by giving good service and it is just your job and what you are paid to do. I earn enouph to support myself through uni(this wouldn't be possible without saturday and sunday penalty rates though, which they want to cut here :( ), I don't need tips but they are nice to get. At the place I work we just split them up when each staff member will get $50, mostly it's just small change we get but sometimes you get crazy tips from people, I remember once getting a $27 tip for a $23 meal. I don't really ever tip myself, I'm a broke student who can't really afford to go out for anything besides coffee ;/, but it isn't actually needed here anyway, it's just a nice extra.

*applauds* Good one on you! I don't think anyone could have explained it better :)

Edit:

Acrisius:
I live in Sweden. I know it's crazy as shit, but the employer actually pays the wages of their own employees (I know, insane right). And unions are strong here, so salaries are often collectively negotiated between the union and the employers organizations. Tipping still happens, but it's very rare, and it's mostly caused by cultural influence from other countries, such as the US for example. I'm with Mr Pink on this one; tipping supports a bad system.

And for those saying that it would lead to an increase in prices...How will it be different from tipping? Correct me if I'm wrong, but tipping is usually at 10/15/20%? So if prices go up by 10%, and you don't have to tip anymore, what's the difference? The workers get better conditions and better salaries and the employers take greater responsibility for their business and employees. I don't see the problem.

Because then the assholes who penny-pinch and never, ever tip even if their server is the Christ of waitressing will have to pay more, and for some reason they're the only people that are listened to :/ Squeaky wheel and all that.

Instead of tipping varying amounts depending on how well they do their job, I either tip big or not at all. I pay out my ass for a meal that I could make at home for 1/10th the price and they don't have the money to properly pay their workers for doing their job? And I'm the asshole for not tipping the one's that refuse to check on the table every once in a while?

I'd still tip. I however did work as a waiter for a bit about 10 years go, and I was still paid minimum wage regardless. My base salary was I think 2.50 an hour, but if I didn't get enough tips to make minimum wage my employer had to pay the difference. So that's the crux, waiters and waitresses already make minimum wage, their employer has to pay the difference if their tips don't bring them up to minimum. So people who say 'no' to this don't really know the situation. Most shifts, with tips, I would make at least four dollars over minimum wage, and some shifts I would make ten to fifteen over minimum wage. Servers aren't starving unless they're really bad with their money, or do a really shitty job and don't get tips so they stay at minimum wage.

That being said, I still tip, usually 10-15% maybe 20% if the service was really good. I understand the shit these people have to deal with, all the ridiculous demands that customers can make, all the drunk assholes and bitches that come in and make a mess of things, and the self-entitled customers who feel the world has to cater to their every whim. They put up with a lot, and if I can make their evening by giving them a decent tip after they give me good service, I'm all for it. However if I get shitty service, I won't tip, and I won't feel bad about it. There are definitely times when I've felt the service I got wasn't worth a tip, they forget about me, don't stop to tell me the kitchen is backed up when it's been over 40 minutes and I haven't gotten my food, never stop to refill drinks, I ask for the check and then 20 minutes later someone else brings it to me because the original server had to take a smoke break or whatever. I don't feel bad at all not tipping, especially because I know their employer will still pay them minimum wage if I don't tip.

Tipping for good service creates better food service. I like better food service. I tend to be a regular at places and when you are a good tipper it pays off. Free drinks, appetizers, bigger portions and such.

Acrisius:

solemnwar:

Acrisius:
I live in Sweden. I know it's crazy as shit, but the employer actually pays the wages of their own employees (I know, insane right). And unions are strong here, so salaries are often collectively negotiated between the union and the employers organizations. Tipping still happens, but it's very rare, and it's mostly caused by cultural influence from other countries, such as the US for example. I'm with Mr Pink on this one; tipping supports a bad system.

And for those saying that it would lead to an increase in prices...How will it be different from tipping? Correct me if I'm wrong, but tipping is usually at 10/15/20%? So if prices go up by 10%, and you don't have to tip anymore, what's the difference? The workers get better conditions and better salaries and the employers take greater responsibility for their business and employees. I don't see the problem.

Because then the assholes who penny-pinch and never, ever tip even if their server is the Christ of waitressing will have to pay more, and for some reason they're the only people that are listened to :/ Squeaky wheel and all that.

I added more to my post after reading the guy above me. I think it's outrageous that people can have so little respect for people who bust their ass for crappy pay so that others can enjoy a meal. Extremely disrespectful.

Honestly the way people treat customer service reps (the "people behind the counter") if you will) in general is disrespectful. It's really sad sometimes the stories I read from fellow reps about the awful way they're treated, and the "customers" get away with it because of how distorted "The customer is always right" has gotten. Not to mention entitlement seems to have shot up into horrifying levels...

Kind of makes me want to be a hermit.

It would depend on the level of service.

I work in retail and earn minimum wage. Nobody ever tips me.

Perhaps one day my Bachelor's degree will be worth more than a coaster. Probably not.

It's common decentcy to tip for having to put up with your stupid shit. I'd be more lenyent the nicer the place was, but still. You may be completely disease free and your balls maybe the cleanest in the world, but that doesn't mean you should sneeze on the salad bar and use the tongs to stratch you balls.

I actually have a friend, who denied a tip to his waiter on free pancake day at Ihop; his reasoning was that whatever percent on 0 is still 0.

I tip based on the experience provided by the service. If the experience was good, I tip. If it was horrible, I don't tip. For me, it's not determined by how much they make.

saoirse13:
I live in Ireland and have worked as a waitress on and off for a couple of years. We have minimum, However I like to tip. If a waiter or waitress is nice, well-mannered, and friendly then i will tip well. The only time I won't tip is if the server is unpleasent and rude.

Working as a waitress, It's always nice to be tipped. Don't forget waiters are on the front line when it comes to a restaurant. If a customer complains about something, It's usually to the waiter, If the food is cold or not cooked to the customers liking then it is the waiter that has to deal with the complaint. Not the chef.

I know this is over the top but I've had to deal with customers like this with no thanks what-so-ever.

I have to agree with you. Waiters and waitresses get a really bump wrap most of the time. Yes, sometimes customers have a legitimate complaint but, other times, customers are real dickheads and actually like to think they're somehow better than the person serving them food so they treat them like shit. Then whenever the manager comes along, they only reaffirm this by saying the customer is right, no matter the complaint, and give them whatever they want.

I know I'm being overly one-sided, that there are is some really lack-luster service out there, but I've heard horror stories of waitresses not being allowed to leave work after they've had a miscarriage so I guess I'm just a bit soft-hearted on the situation and feel for those people.

Not to mention I have a friend who works as a dishwasher at the cafeteria at her college. Not the same thing as being a server, but she works damn hard and has nearly crippled herself doing the job, having to work when she's ill, because her boss would give her no consideration. My friend has rheumatoid arthritis, very little immmune system, and her boss gets on her ass for missing work twice, so my friend has worked through some very bad illnesses that she probably shouldn't have. All in all, I just don't envy those who work in food service.

Where I live, employers have to pay employees for the work they do.

I tip no matter what. Then again I only eat at places that know me well when I pay for my food.

Definitely, the only reason I do tip is because they get ripped off by the current system. Now if they gave me great service I'd tip anyone regardless of their occupation, but that has to be A++ service.

TheBobmus:
No. Because that's how it is in England. We just tend to tip lower, around 10-15%.

I'm a student, so all my money is on loan, yet I'll tip someone who does a good job. My girlfriend used to work as a waitress as well, so is keen on tipping people who make the extra effort.

Wait, they tip more than 10% in the US?

Well fuck a duck.

At 17 years old I was paid less than minimum wage (in Australia) which is legal because I wasn't an adult, the theory is that no one moves out of home until they're 18. I lived out of home because I had finished high school, I figured supporting myself and moving to a city to study was better than staying home doing nothing for a year.

Tips helped, but then again, I was mostly a barman, and I like to think I made peoples night better than if someone else served them.

I occasionally made tips waiting dinner shifts, but bar work was better, I'd get tips on Coffee. Coffee!

I tip in Australia, we have a minimum wage law.

However, I'll only tip when service is beyond what's expected. Given that the level of service is generally pretty shitty here, that's rare.

I leave a tip because waiters don't make minimum wage, and if I was in their spot I'd like the help too. . . but how much I actually leave is entirely dependent on how good the service was.

DevilWithaHalo:
If you'd prefer, we can avoid the controversy surrounding the industry at the moment and people's angsty positions on whatever side. Instead, just a simple question...

If the laws were changed to insure Waiters and other staff were paid at least minimum wage, would you stop tipping them?

Consider this from a economic perspective; since many arguments hinge on the notion they don't make enough. The cultural aspects of tipping can be a foot note at most with that in mind.

If minimum wage wasn't enough, at what wage would you stop tipping?

Perhaps also consider that prices would most likely change to compensate the increased wages in staff.

Any argument made about them not making enough is idiotic. It's called minimum wage for a reason, if they don't earn the difference with tips their employer has to pay them up to minimum wage. and no, I wouldn't stop tipping, because being a server is one of the shittiest jobs on the planet, and they have to get treated like shit all the time. They deserve every penny.