What's with tipping in the United States?

Question

Most of the world does not tip. For example a waitress is paid an hourly wage just like the cook. Why in the states do you feel the requirement to tip? It seems like nonsense.

So if a waitress earns her salary by tips rather than a set wage, in theory she should do better customer service in order to earn more, just like a commission. But if this theory is true, then shouldn't we tip the cook too? So that way the cook will do his or her best to make the food perfectly and sanitary...? Shouldn't we tip the policemen to protect our neighborhoods better at night? Shouldn't we tip our teachers so they help our children learn more?

The whole tipping idea seems ridiculous. Why not just pay people a standard wage? If the taxi driver doesn't do something right, then you can call and complain to the taxi company. Why should I have to tip him for just doing his job?

Oh, and for whoever says that tipping is a worldwide thing, I am sorry, but we don't tip in East Asia, and since East Asia makes up most of the world's population....well.

Waitresses are paid a salary, 99.9% of people never tip. Taxi drivers are paid by the meter, no tips. Well, really only porters in 5 star hotels get tips, I can't think of anyone else in the area who we would give tips to. I just think it is nice to pay the price on the bill, nothing more and nothing less. Isn't thank you enough to show your appreciation for a job well done?

Answer 1

The reason that it is important for a customer to tip is because the minimum wage for servers in the US is less than that of other positions. In PA the minimum wage is 7.15, but servers are 2.83. The reasoning behind this is in labor costs, if we paid everyone more than 8 dollars an hour, we would have to charge 40 dollars a meal, instead of 10, to cover the costs of paying everyone so much more.

Where i work we keep 3 servers to 1 cook, so with the minimum wage like it is now, it would cost 8.49(three servers) +9.00(cook)=17.49/hour. labor costs usually should be around 20%, so that means, you should sell almost $90 worth of product per hour, but that doesnt include management, Dishwashers, Bussers, etc.
If servers were paid the same as cooks, it would be 36/hour, double the sales needed to make labor.

Which is worse, leaving 5 dollars for a tip or paying 2x the price of the meal?

Answer 2

If you don't want to tip, don't. Servers have great memories though, so just don't frequent the same restaurants often. You're probably not eating just food.

Tipping is considered a reward for exceptional service. I work in the service industry, and I can tell you the cooks make much more an hour than I do. Much more. We get paid a low wage because the government assumes that we are making tips on top of our wage, and we are most certainly taxed on those as well. I do agree, however, that we should be paid an higher wage instead of being tipped. But I would have to be paid about $17 an hour to compensate for what I'd lose in tips, which means dining out would become more much expensive, as menu prices would go up, and service standards might not be good.

Answer 3

I know it doesn't make much sense but waitresses are not paid min. wage in the U.S. Businesses are not required to do so for some reason. Sooo... The waitress has to make it up in tips from customers. She is required to claim her tips for tax purposes. if she doesn't bring her salary up to min. wage from the tips then the emp. has to pay them that extra,(but most do make over the min. wage in tips) You should tip for good service accordingly but one of the big problems is some people feel like: Why should they have to pay the employees salary when they are already having to pay for the food? As far as the cook, bussers,matrede etc., the server usually is required to give them a percentage of the tips they earn. I will send a special tip to a cook or chef that has prepared an extra special dish or presented a nice plate. The idea of tipping the cab driver started years ago when drivers did a few extra things they don't do now, speedy service, helping with luggage,coats etc. altough some still do. Again you should tip accprding to service. You are not required to tip anywhere usually, it is a courtesy again for good service. Tipping is a way to thank the people that do thngs for you, even if it's their job to do it anyway, some go that extra mile to make you happy. I don't know how much you have traveled, but it ahs been my experience that in a lot of other countries tipping is expected. What I don't like is when the tip is automatically put on my bill!!! I have complained to managment before about that one if my service was not up to standard and it was taken off. Teachers and policemen make a larger income than most service industry employees ( though I feel not enough) but it would be nice if more people let them know that they are appeciated but if you will notice most people in publice service jobs or government jobs are not allowed to recieve tips. Strange world we live in but that's the way it is.

Answer 4

The rest of the world DOES tip on meals. But....the "tip" is included in the price on the menu. In Germany for instance....a percentage is added to the price of a meal so that money can be paid to the server. In this country it is basically a way to keep prices down. It is a way to "trick" the consumer into thinking they are paying less for their meal. And, not all servers are equal, so you could get horrible service at a restaurant because all guests would be created equal. But the fact of the matter is.....all guests are not created equal...those that tip better get more attention.....and those that get more attention in turn tip better. Get it? Therefore, I am sorry to say that generally, people from other countries do not get quality service (they may get good service, but not the attention that better tippers get) because they don't tip well or at all.
It is a "Catch 22"......and believe me......most servers know who will be the better tippers 5 minutes after they sit down.

Answer 5

In France the tip is included in the bill. I believe that in most fast food joints the cooks get part of the tips as well. In Barcelona I tipped the cab driver. I don't think that tipping is a singularly "American" thing. True there are different customs in different places around the world, but tipping is an international idea, as far as I can tell.

PS. Do your really have time to call and complain about a cab driver who might have accidentally messed up? I mean really

Answer 6

Tipping is just a way of saying that you appreciated the job someone did. For some jobs like waitresses, drivers, valets, etc. its expected because in this country, we have accepted that there are jobs that just "require" us to tip them. It's more of a social contract than anything else. I get a little awkward when I have to tip people that do other things for me, like cut my hair. I just paid 60 bucks for a haircut and now I have to tip you? I also hate bathroom attendants and I never tip them. I can put soap into my own hand and don't need anyone's help. When we were in Vegas we tipped EVERYONE because, again, it's a social contract, and just understood that you tip people that do things for you. I know it seems dumb and not all professions accept it. I've worked regular jobs where it was company policy to not accept money or gifts just because the service should speak for itself. And yes, I think that if people aren't tipped or tipped well, they will give you crappier service.

Answer 7

I'm not sure. But if I had to hazard a wild guess, I'd say that waitresses would do a crappy job if you didn't tip them, and that's why people tip them. Cooks might do a good job even if you don't tip them, which is why people don't tip them. The difference might be a result of the fact that waitresses tend to be dumb punk kids, while cooks are higher calibur.

Then they'd tip in America because it's a smart thing to do. And they don't tip in other countries because other countries are non-innovating socialist crapholes.

Answer 8

Where I work, waitresses make three dollars an hour (which is the highest I've been paid in my career as a waitress), cooks make ten. That's why.
Oh and we don't have bussers. We clean our own tables.

Answer 9

Waiters and waitresses in the US are paid only the minimum wage, and sometimes they agree to work for less than minimum wage and to forego medical and other benefits. Tips are a huge part of the earnings of waiters and waitresses so that they, too, can enjoy some of the nicer things in life.