Tipped off
Tipping, yay or nay? For me it’s always and remains to be a no.
Here’s my reasons for why I don’t agree with the concept of tipping people:
If you’re tipping, say, a waitress, you do realise she already gets paid? In response to the counter-argument about low pay/minimum wage - shouldn’t that be the government’s responsibility to higher minimum wage? If we tip, we prevent the government from seeing an issue and taking action, we are in a way feeding the problem of low pay.
It’s unfair on so many levels. I work in retail and nobody ever tips me - why do some professions inspire tipping while others don’t? I work just as hard to serve a customer. Likewise, some waitresses (for instance) are going to be tipped more than others, maybe based on luck or looks or whatever.
The social politics of ‘how much do I tip?’ Who really has time for that stupid question? It’s such a superficial element of life that we could do without.
That money you use for tipping could be given to charity.
Isn’t a thank you enough? You work, you pay for a service, that person earns from working and pays for services they receive and so on. It’s the system we live by. Why does tipping have to get involved?
It originates from the wealthy displaying their riches to show to another that they had more and therefore had more power. Aren’t we beyond that in the modern world?
I understand that some people are impressed with how a worker provides a service above and beyond expectations and should be rewarded but in my opinion it should be about the company rewarding the worker based on the customer’s feedback.
What do you think? I’m happy to take counter-arguments.
I'm not sure how old this post is, but I'll take a stab at it. For the record, I don't believe in tipping (or its supposed benefits, such as better service). I firmly believe that people should get paid for what they do--but by their employers. Instead of tipping, places should just raise their prices if they need to cover their employees.
If you’re tipping, say, a waitress, you do realise she already gets paid? In response to the counter-argument about low pay/minimum wage - shouldn’t that be the government’s responsibility to higher minimum wage? If we tip, we prevent the government from seeing an issue and taking action, we are in a way feeding the problem of low pay.
Why I have a problem with this: The problem isn't minimum wage here--it's the fact that servers don't make minimum wage. Yes, it is absolutely the government's responsibility to make this illegal. But saying that us tipping prevents the government from seeing an issue is wholly distancing ourselves from the issue. It's saying that it's an issue between the government and the underpaid workers, which I disagree with. Getting paid below minimum wage is a human rights issue, which is something I think we should all be concerned with. Not tipping servers is not you taking a stand against the government, it's not proactive, and it doesn't change anything. Working towards better laws should not include gypping workers.
It’s unfair on so many levels. I work in retail and nobody ever tips me - why do some professions inspire tipping while others don’t? I work just as hard to serve a customer. Likewise, some waitresses (for instance) are going to be tipped more than others, maybe based on luck or looks or whatever.
The only reason I can think of for tipping certain professions is because we know they are underpaid (i.e. below minimum wage). We know retail workers are getting paid minimum wage. We don't know how much of the money delivery drivers, hairdressers, or certain other workers. On the point of some waitresses being more based on luck or looks... that can apply to literally any profession. We're not going to ask employers to stop handing out salaries because better-looking people tend to get paid more.
The social politics of ‘how much do I tip?’ Who really has time for that stupid question? It’s such a superficial element of life that we could do without.
Again, of course we could do without this question, but this argument implies that it is okay to shortchange a person if it is at our convenience which I do not agree with.
That money you use for tipping could be given to charity.
It could, but so could money that goes to any other extraneous thing we buy.
Isn’t a thank you enough? You work, you pay for a service, that person earns from working and pays for services they receive and so on. It’s the system we live by. Why does tipping have to get involved?
Finally, I leave you with this:"You dine at a restaurant. Food is offered by the menu. The prices you're paying are for kitchen labor, food cost, ambience (including linen laundry) and leasehold costs. The 20% you tip your server is for just that -- service. Diminish the tip if the service is poor; that's the way it works and has been working, culturally, for a long, long time. However, if the *food* is poor, don't take it out on your server. The recourse one takes when the food is poor is to take it up with the server and return the offending dish -- then the server becomes your "advocate." If the server performs this assistance for you quickly and seamlessly, their tip should remain intact. If you don't feel they've done a good job as your advocate; by all means reduce the tip.I receive tips when I bartend (I must give them to the tipped staff 'cause I'm management). It's always nice when I receive a little something extra for a job well done. On the other side of the coin, if I'm careless it's represented in my tip; it's a learning experience.When I go out I like to tip well. I'm often remembered and non-scientifically value the complimentary drinks, apps, desserts and other perks I receive as even compensation for the extra expense. Not to mention the outstanding service, which is guaranteed.Of course, if you want to split hairs, tipping is "optional." And I've encountered a few people in my life who don't tip at all... because, they say, tipping is "optional." One of these individuals is a former colleague who "took me out" to lunch -- it was a memorably ghastly experience. Apparently this bone-head wouldn't tip and yet returned to the same places over and over again. I wonder why they ever bothered serving him again. I never spoke to this guy after I saw this (relatively rich) man look me straight in the eye and give me that rationale with a straight face!"
