Stompy

What would be the motivation? The same thing that everyone else has: to avoid getting fired. If a person has a shitty attitude and doesn't wanna do their job, they get canned, lose their job, and lose their income.

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thespian86

I don't really think about it. I believe its just a custom. I guess people are serving you they get a tip? It's a good thought. I tip well also. I only tip well if someone makes me feel welcome though. I guess its how well they make things for you?

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hannukah harry

actually, you are being cheap. you live in the US. a custom of the US is to tip service jobs (i agree it's gotten out of hand with barista's and such) like bartenders and waiters. you may not like it, but when you go to these places you are only charged the cost of the food/drink and it's preperation. rather than including a cost for the serving of the drink and other amenities, you tip. when you go out to eat, the waiter does not just come to the table for 30 seconds to get your order and drop off the food. unless you're at a denny's like establishment, that is. at a decent restaurant, the waiter is taking your order, putting in your order, getting you drinks, refilling your drinks, getting your food, getting anything else you need, and trying to make sure you have a pleasant experiance. sometimes that means a lot of work, some times it means little. we (americans) give a tip in accordance to the current custom (15%) modified by how we feel the service was. choosing not to go to places wehre service is not included in teh bill to avoid paying for it is being cheap.

when you go to service establishment, you should be going with the understanding that you're giving a tip. if the restaurant were to include the tip in the cost of your food, and $8 burger would skyrocket probalby to $12 or $14, when you really should be giving max $1.60 for a20% tip on that burger.

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Paq

my take, mind you i work as a waiter for a while to pay for grad school...

1. server jobs are relatively easy to come by bc they are not incredibly expensive to the restaurant that hires them. 4 servers to every line cook, basically, in most establishments, up to about 10/12 servers per experienced cook/manager. per hour.

Now, a lot of these people probably would not have a job if they were even paid minimum wage, let's say half wouldn't bc the restaurant couldn't 'afford' it. anymore and they really couldn't afford service staff. So, you are giving several people a job at little cost to the establishment.

the customers do pick up the tab for this...kinda socialistic, really...

But essentially, this is one reason why a lot of people are against raising minimum wage. I do fairly well in the restaurant where i work. Some do MUCH better, some places do worse, but on average, a server in my restaurant makes about $15-20 per hour. Now, there is no way the restaurant could afford to pay me and every other server that much, so they opt out by paying us 2.13+tips..

I'm not making much sense, but essentially, tipping ensures that several people are employed who wouldn't be otherwise, ensures that the service will be better than if you aren't tipping, and allows recourse for when things go wrong. on top of that, servers are paid fairly well overall, so they are making a better than living wages existence at little cost to the restaurant while spreading the cost over several people.

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hilbert25

I've never really felt the need to tip bartenders using drink guns either. The few bars that I've frequented more than once have all been little Irish type joints and the bartenders were really cool people and definitely deserved a good tip.

jvwgtr

I'm glad somebody else brought this up...it's one of my biggest pet peeves, even though I never tip less than 20%.

I hate going to the pizza shop, for example, to pick up a carryout order...and there's a freaking tip jar on the counter.
For what, handing me the pizza? Accepting payment? C'mon.

I hate that tipping is expected--I've actually seen waitresses chase customers into the parking lot, demanding to know where their tip is!
Awful.

Paq

don't forget, when you get takeout at a nice restaurant, you're supposed to tip as well.

generally 10-15%....

Also,don't forget, the bartender, server, anyone whose income is dependent upon tips (not baristas or anyone paid minimum wage or higher) must pay taxes on at least 10% of their sales.

So say, i'm waiting on a group of 10 people and their total bill is $500 and they leave me a lovely $5 tip (happened to a friend of mine bc he didnt' automatically add gratuity)...at the end of the night, he had to claim at least $50 from the party and pay taxes as if he'd made $50 from that. He also had to pay $15 in "tipshare" to the bartender, hostess and server assistant/busboy/whatever you wanna call him.

So, this party ended up costing him $10 outright and a few dollars in taxes...all for doing his job.

Yay, to get to pay to do your own job...yay it's so great, lemme tell ya...

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H12

On one hand, I totally agree with ya. If I go to a restuarant by myself or a friend who thinks like me and the service wasn't that great or nice, they get no tip. If I'm out with a group of friends, whether the service was note-worthy or not, I'll tip because that's what's expected of me. I'd rather not tip people who don't do much at all, or haven't done anything special to help me enjoy my stay.

On the other hand, I work at a boat-dock, where I mainly pump gas, carry bags of ice, and be overall friendly and helpful to people on the drop of a dime...about once every twenty minutes; we're not a terribly busy place. I get paid $5.50 an hour, yet I generally get afew tips a day, ranging from mere change to $5. I know what my job requires me to do isn't that much and isn't even tip-worthy in my book, but I try to be extremely nice and helpful...and when I get tipped, I thank them for it and it really makes me feel good about my job. My salary is enough, but tips is just good motivation if nothing else.

So I think about this...I'm getting tips on a summer job that I don't even need that badly and pays over minimum wage, and it makes me feel good and motivated. Now, think about the waiters and waitresses who're getting paid diddly-squat in a job they NEED because their parents doesn't help pay for car payments, or college, or whatever else. I don't like to tip that much, but since the restuarant isn't doing their part too much to help them out, I feel like it's an act of kindness that I ought to do more often anyways, assuming the service was good.

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Stompy

Eh? How am I being cheap? Because I question the whole thing? Don't get me wrong, I never shaft anyone on a tip, and I know it's a custom here in the US. It certainly doesn't mean I'm cheap if I question it, because honestly, even after all these replies, I still see no point in tipping other than making the customer foot the bill because the restaurant wants to save a few $$.

A common reason for tipping I've seen so far is, "Tipping exists to show your appreciation for the person doing their job just for YOU. If waitresses make minimum wage, then what motivation would they get to do a good job?" Answer to that is simple: what reason or motivation does everyone else with a non-tipping job have for wanting to keep their job? Do a bad job, you get canned.

Another frequent response I've seen is, "If the waitress is getting you this, doing that, etc etc and making your visit enjoyable.." That's the thing... taking the order, bringing the food, giving a refill, and bringing the check doesn't exactly qualify (in my book) as tip-worthy service.

When I say "that's their job", I don't mean to sound arrogant about it, but really, let me fill my own drink. I'll do it. Because I'm cheap? Nah, because it's not that big of a deal.

My main beef is with waiters/waitresses. There are definitely other jobs where people get tips (like someone carrying your heavy ass bags up flights of stairs) where I can perfectly understand where a tip is reasonable... but not for taking my order, bringing the food, then 20 mins later bringing my check, and most certainly not for a bartender simply mixing an already overpriced drink. Charge me for the booze, set the bottles in front of me, and let ME mix them if it's that much trouble for 'em.

There was an episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm that had me rollin.. where Larry David stayed in a hotel and EVERYONE stood around as if he was supposed to give them a tip. For example, his air conditioner in his room broke, so he had maintenance come up and fix it. The maintenance guy stood around after he fixed it as if a tip was to be given. Larry had the attitude of "...but that's your job." Same with the guy who just OPENED A DOOR for him. I mean.. c'mon.

I actually thought most of the tipping situations in that episode were exaggerated (especially maintenance fixing the A/C) until I made a comment to a friend of mine: "man, I'd be livid if they actually expected a tip for that.." to which they replied "believe it or not, they do!"

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Stompy

I've never once tipped in that situation. I actually wasn't aware that you were supposed to do that until recently when a person in front of me gave $5 to the carry out guy just for ringing him up!

Now THAT is on par with tipping someone at McDonald's for ringing you up.

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Paq

see, while i can understand that it seems "odd" to tip someone for just sending the order back and ringing up and taking money for a takeout order, you have to remember that the person doing that is a server/bartender and is getting paid, AT MOST, about $3.35/hr or, more than likely, $2.12/hr. Restaurants use servers/bartenders for takeout orders to save on labor costs...

now, most people do actually tip for takeouts, but normally not more than 15% max, most around 10% or so

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hannukah harry

choosing to not go out to eat or drink somewhere because you don't want to tip when you can afford it is being cheap. if you can easily afford a $10,000 suit but aren't willing to spend that much and opt for $100 suit, that's being cheap.

i gave another reason for tipping, although maybe i didn't state it very clearly.

tipping at a restaurant makes your cost cheaper and allows staff to make more money. if the restaurant were to take up the cost of paying higher wages, instead of a burger costing $8 plus tip, it would probably cost $14-16. and all that extra money you'd be paying? it wouldn't be going to the wait staff, they'd maybe make $8/hr rahter than the $2.12/hr they currently do, but the restaurant would be bringing in a lot of extra profit because the cost of everything except maybe soft drinks would raise.

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Paq

hannukah makes a good point, namely, you'd see about a 20% increase in food prices if you didn't tip, probably a bit more bc then the restaurant would have to pay extra taxes along with the extra pay to the staff, so say 25% more..and your server probably wouldn't be as attentive...i know for a fact that we wouldn't volunteer for certain shifts/hours...many of my friends work "double' shifts, no breaks, no designated lunch time, etc, just to make a bit more money bc you sure aren't paid when you have no tables...

not to mention, most servers would quit if they only made $8/hr. it's a pain of a job, believe it or not, and even ihop servers, if they are fast and efficient, make about twice that.

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filtherton

Where is the line drawn between somebody "just doing their job" and someone doing a job that deserves a tip? Why make a distinction? Everyone is "just doing their job". I'm just not sure where the line is drawn. A mover deserves a tip, but a server doesn't? Why?

Prince

I don't think we'd see a meaningful increase in the price of meals served at these restaurants even if nobody tipped anyone anymore. Healthy competition alone would see to that.

Besides, it isn't that restaurants do so poorly financially - they do quite well. The majority of them - excluding perhaps the smaller ones - could easily pay minimum wage (at the very least) to their waitresses without having to take any drastic measures to ensure their survival. It is simply more profitable to pay close to nothing and expect the customer...oh, sorry - consumer - to pay the rest. In addition to the actual product, of course.

To say that restaurant owners could not afford to pay the staff what they get paid now with tips (10-20 bucks an hour even, at times) is irrelevant. There is no reason why they should have to. I've never met a waiter that should be making more than 7 bucks an hour, if that. Based on their performance, anyway.

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Journeyman

Don't forget to tip your tattoo artist. That ink is there for good, and if you're not raging mad about him/her fucking it up, put some extra cash in his pocket for it.

Paq

yeah, there would most definitely be an increase in food prices. Consider that the restaurant i am at right now has only 7% left over after you take out food, labor and incidentals...if servers were even paid minimum wage, 1, there would be fewer, so the service you did get would suck even more and 2, no one would do the job and 3, prices of food would increase about 20% just to keep a 7% profit margin

and how many jobs are someone paid based on their performance? Servers and shoe shiners, Commissioned sales people, and umm...other than that, you're market rate plus a bit or minus a bit, depending on situation..

don't forget to tip the pizza delivery boy..www.tipthepizzadeliveryboy.com or something like that. hilarious site that is oh so true..

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ChrisJericho

Personally, unless I'm in a sit-down restauraunt I rarely tip.

Even when I am in a restaurant, I do not give a flat tip, the tip I give is highly correlated with the service I receive.

Bad service= little or NO tip
Good service= regular tip

When I order pizza and have it delivered, I do not tip. I don't tip the UPS guy or the postman for delivering mail, why would I tip a pizza delivery person?


Hair cuts are also like restaurants. A good haircut where the barber takes his time and does a good job = $2 tip (on top of a $14 hair cut). However, someone who rushes the job and does poorly does not get a tip.

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Paq

http://www.tipthepizzaguy.com/

believe me, you wanna tip the pizza guy. UPS and Mail delivery don't use their own vehicles, get paid extremely well, and don't generally have to worry about being robbed for cash.
Pizza guy even has to pay for his own gas...cmon, in this time of $2/gallon gas, he's probably losing at least 2 dollars ever 20-25 miles...
and don't forget, if you're a frequent guest at a restaurant or caller to a pizza place, they remember...beeeelieve me, they remember...So, while you may tip generally well for good service and nothing for bad, remember that servers talk and if you have a bad tip reputation, your service will probably decline as well. Servers generally spend more time on tables they don't know or know will tip well instead of wasting extra time with tables who are known for being low/poor tippers.

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kutulu

All the responses by cheap people here are really frustrating me. I spent 7 years delivering pizza for cheapskates that didn't tip. My wife has been a server for 6 years. It's good money because most people are kind enough to appreciate the job you do and tip accordingly but assholes who don't tip can ruin your day.

This shows that by NOT tipping, the server isn't just receiving no payment, but actually losing money because he's being taxed on money that was never received. Additionally, most restaurants have food runners, bartenders, and busers. All of them get money from the server. In many places, the server has to pay 3-5% of their sales to them as a group. Consider this:

Four people eat; the check comes to $50. No tip is left.
Server has to claim 8% of that, govt takes 1/3 of the 8%. Total cost to the server: $1.33
Buser/food runner/bartender's take, 5%: $2.50
Server's net income from that table of cheapskates: -$3.66
Server's hourly wage: $2.19
Average length of meal: ~ 1hour
# tables per hour: ~ 3
The server spends a net 20 minutes with you so he gets $0.73 in hourly wages from your table but wait, it gets better. The jackass who doesn't tip costs the server $3.66 so instead of actually making a living from that table, the table just COST the server $2.93. What a way to make a living.

Because of this, people should ALWAYS give a bare minimum, regardless of the service. As I said before, they usually have to give around 5% of their sales to other people that work with them and they have to claim 8% as income whether or not they are tipped on it. Therefore, it's not even a tip unless you're exceeding 7.67% of the total bill. Otherwise you're not just giving them nothing, you're taking money from them.

Nobody is forcing you to contribute to tipping but since it is an accepted practice that servers will get tips and therefore the employer can pay them meaningless wages it boils down to you need to tip. How would you like it if your employer came to you and said, "Look man, I don't want to pay you for the last hour you just spent busting your ass so I'm not going to"

There's a lot more than just taking the order and bringing you the food and the check. They have to know everything on the menu, what the sides are, what can or can't be substituted, and make sure it's all correct. Where does the blame fall when your burger has the mayo on it that the customer didn't want on it? The server. Can they reasonably know that it had mayo on it without picking through the entree? No, but the blame still falls on them.

People come into the establishment looking to make people's day shitty also. They know that they can be as dickish as they want and still get their ass kissed. The server has too put up with all that bullshit too.

Lastly, they have too put up with asshole managers who are always on their asses about how their tables aren't spending enough money. At some places, they have to do "punishment" work if the guests don't average enough drinks/appetizers/etc.

All in all, you know how the place works. You are served and are therefore expected to tip. It's not some bonus to the server, it's their life you're fucking with if you don't tip. Nobody is forcing you to eat at places that have tipped employees. You can easily eat at McDonalds if you wish to avoid tipping.

ps
At most restaurants, the people who run the take out orders are also relying on tips (not as much as servers, but they still do) so if you order take out and don't tip, you're still screwing them over.

edit
Damn right we remember, it's not just the no-tippers, but the shitty $1.00-$1.50 tippers also. It takes two times to get a good driver to know that the customer is a cheapass. From then on they are always the last order made, delievered, etc. We make sure that it isn't made as well and slices aren't cut as evenly. Basically I'd do anything I could get away with aside from actually fucking with the food. If they odered wings, I'd make sure that the wing sauce got all over the inside of the bag so that it makes a big mess when they open it up. If they ordered cans of soda, I'd shake them up a little. Anything that doesn't touch the food is fair game. Deliever every order on the run before they get theirs.

On the other hand, the good tippers get their food as hot and fast as we can safely get it too them.

maleficent

I was with you until that last statement. I rarely tip less than 20 percent, unless the service is abyslam. BUT If I fax my order in to Bennigans or some other chain restaurant, and then pick it up later. Last time I checked, the chef did not get a percentage of tips, the person at the take out counter has done nothing more than hand me my bag of food. Why on earth would that deserve a tip. They've done nothing to serve me. And I am saving them money, because they don't have to wash my dishes, they don't have to refill my water glass, they dont have to bus my table.

For a tip? They're coming to my house and cleaning the kitchen.

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Paq

bravo, Kutulu, servers everywhere thank you.

most places i have been expect 3% tipshare to hostesses, bussers, bartender...

and yeah, 10% of sales is minimum now, even though a lot of people take home less than 10% after a shitty tipper and 3% tipshare...

Also, it's easier to recover from a bad tipper in some places, like "turn and burn' atmospheres where you'll have 20 tables a night total. 20 tables leaving roughly $5 each or 18 tables leave $5 and 1 no tipper and one leaving a good bit extra...

but say, a nice place where a server will only have 5 tables, it's almost impossible to havea decent night with one shitty tipper. Say...last night, i had 4 tables total for a closing shift, first one left $20 tip, second left $10, 3rd left 8, 4th left $9. so i left with $40 after tipshare and 4 hrs work, slow night but not bad for a monday. my friend had 4 tables and $100 in sales more than me, but walked with $30 bc one of his tables left 56 cents on a $150 tab, even though there was absolutely no complaint, he just picked up the change and i think he expected someone else to put the tip down and didn't check. careless or malicious, we don't know, but my friend was out $4.50 in tipshare for that table and a few dollars in taxes, so he paid to do his own job...aggravating and ruined his night and there simply weren't enough tables to recover...

and don't forget, there are a TON of things servers have to do that they aren't paid for at all. Opening is 30 minutes of running your butt off getting things ready, folding napkins, wrapping silverware, making tea, setting up stations, cleaning, polishing, washing dishes from the night before, sweeping, setting up tables, checking salt/pepper, filling sugar, arranging chairs, putting in bread, setting up expo stations, wiping trays, cleaning trays. Then there is the 'sidework' you do before you go, cleaning sections, wrapping more silverware, washing dishes (yes, some servers wash dishes), make salads and desserts during the shift,(some do that too), wrapping food, wrapping togo orders, running food, cleaning up, helping other servers, guests, dealing with that one guest who is driving you insane by drinking a coke every 28 seconds,refilling drinks, etc...

serving isn't exactly a job where you show up, take orders, run food, and leave...most of the 'work' servers do is completely unpaid.

but all in all, kutulu said it best..

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kutulu

My best non-tipping story was when earlier in the night I had a guy pay me in pennies (he was nice enough to roll them all). I spent the rest of my night with like $12 in rolled pennies in the car. Later in the night I got an order for a customer that I knew didn't tip. It was like a cartoon where the light bulb lights up above my head. I get to the house and his change is like four bucks so I politely tell him, "I'm sorry but the previous customers took all of my singles from me and I only have large bills. I do have a lot of change in my car though if that's allright," (lying of course). Of course even that doesn't get him to tip me and he says that's fine. I go back to my car, pissed yet not surprised. I grab 8 rolls of pennies, unroll all of them and give the guy a 400 pennies. I offered to stay and count it all for him, but that wasn't necessary. It turned a shitty part of the night into one of my most enjoyable trips ever.

The store I worked for didn't care much about us making cash/check drops. There were times that at the end of the night I had well over $700 in my bank bag. I even got robbed at gunpoint once. After that, I kept my tips separate so that even if I got robbed, only the store would lose money.

ChrisJericho

I totally reject the notion that pizza delivery people deserve a tip. They are simply transporting an object from point A to point B. The fact that they use their own car has no relevence. The people who deliver newspapers at 4 am in the morning use their own cars, but I don't see people tipping them.

Furthermore, if my pizza came all mangled and cold, I would call the pizza store and inform the manager of a poor product. If the problem persisted I would contact higher management or simply not order from that business again.

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kutulu

Pardon me, but are cars free? Is gas free? How about insurance? How about the fact that you didn't have to pay anything extra to have it brought to you? It's not like the employer pays their car payment, gas, and insurance. The delievery is free because it is expected that the customer gives a tip to cover those costs and thanks him for the convenience of not having to get off their lazy ass for more time than it took to answer the door.

Don't forget that hundreds of drivers are robbed at gunpoint each year. Some are even murdered. If you don't tip, you don't deserve the service.

Newspaper delievery drivers are compensated well for the use of their car, either by a higher wage or on a per mile basis. Back in the day when you'd actually pay a person directly each week for the paper they WERE tipped.

I'd never fuck with the actual product but I'd take care of the customers that take care of me before some cheapskate non-tipper. If they don't like the product, we'd bring them another, but it would take more time and then they have to wait longer. All this could have been avoided if they had the courtesy to respect the driver risking their life to bring them dinner.

filtherton

Given the circumstances, you probably wouldn't be missed.

ChrisJericho

Pardon me, did anyone force these people to deliver pizzas? HELL no. If they do not think it's fair that the employer does not compensate them for delivery expenses, they should either

A) Not go into the pizza delivery business.

B)Form a union and demand better treatment. I.E. all pizza delivery people in a city stop delivering until their travel expenses are paid by the employer.


I worked at a Jack in the Box during highschool as a cashier. I never put out a tip cup because I believe that one should be satisfied earning the wages that one agreed to work for. Call me old fashioned.

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gondath

The people at fast food places who do their jobs right have an assload of work to do. I never received a tip for it, just lots of complaining by whiny customers and bitching from managers. They usually have to churn out more orders than a waiter does, but they still get no respect. Even the front counter people have to clean things constantly, help out with drive thru, etc. Blame the lazy ones if you must. Otherwise, it's a tragedy.

kutulu

Tipping the driver or waiter is socially accepted and expected act. If you're not tipping you're breaking the unwritten rules and trying to get something for nothing. More importantly, you're just being cheap.

People aren't going to do that job for shit wages. If you don't want tipping, it means higher wages to offset the increased labor costs. At the shop I worked at labor was 35% with drivers taking half the labor costs. Their hourly wages would have to at least double, if not triple to offset the costs of maintenance, gas, risk, etc. That $10 pizza would cost almost $15 if you wanted tipping to end. Or you could just give the driver a few bucks and have them respect you also.

We're asking for a couple of bucks to show that you give a damn. It's more convenient, and you don't need to use your own gas. Why is it so freaking hard for some people to show some respect for the job?

Tipping the cashier at JiB is not socially accepted. When 98% of society does one thing and you choose not to, what's that saying?

Prince

That I can think for myself...

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gondath

Screw what people think is socially expected and acceptable when its for the sake of tradition alone. I would have thought most people here on the TFP at least would agree with that. People need to start questioning their cultural habits more often.

ChrisJericho

It says that unlike you I do not let other people's beliefs dictate my life.

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Derwood

I have opinions on both sides of the issue:

Pro Tip:

- I agree when restaurants have a mandatory 15% gratuity on parties over a certain size (usually 7). This way, the waiter does not get stiffed on the tip.

- I agree with tipping people whose job, at that moment sucks. For example, when I pull up to a car wash on a 100 degree day in my airconditioned SUV, then I think it's nice to give the guy a tip who is there to wash my car.

- Good service = good tip. I rarely tip low, but have been known to do it in the extreme case.


Anti Tip:

- Tip jars. In many stores this is actually against the rules. You can probably ask the manager about it or, in the case of a corporate chain like Starbucks, call their customer service to find out their policy. Franchised stores you can't do much about, but I'd bet that many of these tip jars were the concoction of the people working there and are actually against policy.

- I won't tip people who I know are getting paid a lot to begin with.

- I won't tip taxi drivers on very short rides. In Chicago, taxi's are so frigging expensive anyways that it's ridiculous. THe amount of cash a cabbie pulls in per hour is astonishing.

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loopyt

I worked in the food industry for several years and tips are sometimes the only money wait staff survives on. Most places now use the measly $2.30 an hour to offset taxes. Most 40 hour checks for waiters at least in texas are about $10-$50.
without tips they starve. Blame the industry or owners all you want but that doesnt change the fact that there is someone that is surviving daily on the tips they are given.
good service deserves a good tip. no service no tip. thats simple.
If you cant afford to tip you shouldnt be eating out , if you can afford it and dont ...thats just bad karma..

kutulu

Oh please. Don't try to spin it like it's some witty non-conformist viewpoint of yours. It's not some unsolved mystery on why they get tipped or what jobs expect tips either.

Unless the person somehow disrespected you, why would you choose to intentionally offend them? All they are asking for is a couple of bucks to show that you respect them and appreciate the service.

I've only had to use taxis a few times, so I've never understood what is the standard. When I have been in a cab, I've asked them about it and they've nobody has ever given me a straight answer. A few are like "it's not a big deal, we rely on the fares and tips are just something extra" and the rest have said something like "something fair" (can you be more freaking cryptic?).

kutulu

deleted, why did my edit appear as a new post?

Jay Francis

I hate tipping. And I always get into arguments on whether you do or don't tip at a Sonic. In my opinion there isn't any difference between a McDonalds employee picking up a burger and handing it to you and a Sonic employee bringing you a burger.

And all you can eat buffets...why would you have to tip at one of those?

So, if I am at a full service restaurant, 15% no problem. But I expect to be greeted, have the waiter check to see if everything is okay, and be friendly.

Journeyman

I think that A) 98% is a very unreasonable number, as I doubt you'd all be up in arms over a measely 2% of customers, and B) Because everybody else is doing it and "what does that say about you" when you don't? isn't a really good incentive to change my mind.

I tip, but I don't do it because "98%" of everyone else does.

happyraul

I wish to reiterate that servers live on their tips. Last summer working at Red Lobster, my paychecks for 35-40 hours were usually less than $1 because of taxes, so tips were my income. I know that the servers who had insurance through the restaurant never got a paycheck, they had to pay money, so yeah they lived on tips.

If you don't like the system, then don't go out to eat. No matter what, you have to pay for your service, personally I would rather be in control of how much to pay rather than have the restaurant charge me more to eat and pay their employees more.

By the way, take out people at a place like Red Lobster make around $7-8, so unless you have a some special circumstances that would make them work harder than most of the time, I think $1-$2 should suffice for the tip. A lot of the time they use hostesses for that position, but sometimes its servers on busy days like superbowl sunday.

Ella

I always thought tipping was practically mandatory in the US? It's enlightening to read how people only feel compelled to tip when the service warrants it. Which is precisely the only time I tip.

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